Frank Luntz: Americans Are "Mad As Hell" (VIDEO)

Republican pollster and communications guru Frank Luntz joined the roundtable on ABC's This Week today to discuss the significance of the House passing its health care reform bill last night. Luntz, who wrote a comprehensive memo detailing a strategy to defeat Democratic efforts at health care reform, said that his polling showed Americans won't take to the House's bill because they are increasingly worried about government spending. In general, his polling shows Americans "are mad as hell and aren't going to take it anymore," Luntz said.

You can watch that clip here, or watch the full roundtable discussion below.

Comments

[avocats]

New wig, same old bull.

[azdirk]

I watched Luntz perform on C-Span II last Sunday, pushing his book. He used a classical bait and switch technique at one point. He quoted a fact about the healthcare reform bill and argued against it by using opinion as fact. Kind of like Faux News Channel. Too often people don' t know the difference between fact and opinion. Years ago, our local newspaper headlined something like this: JFK, RFK, MLK assassinations linked. The article was written about a Congressional inquiry into the three assassinations. The reference given was to Coretta Scott King's testimony that she believed they were linked. The headline led the reader to believe that evidence was found linking the killings. The reality was that there was absolutely nothing to tie them together.

[JiminNC]

Yes we are Franky .. at scumbagass­holephucks­ticks like yourself

[VeryFairMOR]

I recently purchased Luntz's audio book, What Americans Really Want, Really.
I was surprised to find that a large portion of the chapter on politics was devoted to lavish praise for Obama. He did everything but get a feeling moving up his leg.
I'm guessing that this book probably wrapped in May or June of this year.
Luntz made a classic error in his calculations, I think. He thought that representing "change" was fantastic, in and of itself, without any consideration of what the "change" is actaully going to mean when it is made into policy.
I think many people make this mistake in politics. They think that politics is all sort of a game. Where you create words that win, and you out-smart your opponents with clever ads and talking points. While very carefully not committing yourself to any specific policies. Tell'em what they want to hear.
Luntz seems to have been mesmerized by Obama as many in the press were, and still are.
When Obama's "change" began to be translated into actual policies, that will cause actual things to happen, the trouble began.
No one should ever forget that in the long run, what you actually do will have a much larger impact on things than what you say you will do.

[JazzyJim]

Why would you ask a Republican about "his" polls as they are tainted? That makes no sense. Our Education system sux! Come on ABC - act like you have some journalistic integrity!

[JazzyJim]

Luntz is so Fokkks - He frames the question - "The Democrats spent a Trillion dollars (to voters in 2010) and is your health care any better, this year than last, etc., etc." Well Frank - its $980 Billion over 10 years - in no single "year" is it a Trillion Dollars and the studies show that this bill will actually save money - You LIE FRANK.

[AnneMarie27]

I saw this Sunday morning, and I wasn't impressed with Luntz' histrionics then. Thank goodness for Donna, Sam and Cokie for balance and logic. Luntz needs to find himself an office to run for. He sounds like a campaigner.

[JazzyJim]

He is the Faux Newz wordsmith hired to discredit Democrats. He's all about the Bill Kristol campaign and religulous deceit coming out of the Ministry of Disinformation called Fokks Newz.

[PkSully]

I've never watched Fox news, Beck, O'Reilly, Rush etc but I'm pretty damn mad. Bush policies eroded our civil liberties for 8 crappy years while the Neo Cons special interest groups got paid. Obama wins on a "Change" platform so now that means it's the lefts turn to butter up their guys? I don't see the logic there. We get screwed twice. (Apparently Wall St wins twice)

[december30]

Frank luntz? People please. This guy is an inciter. Think for yourselves. Give me a break.

[jaslyn]

Wow. He had to look at a poll to tell that??!!!

[JazzyJim]

He creates his polls to reflect positively on the GOP, then sells it as "the voice of the people" - when, like Bush, they're hand picked GOP audiences...Faux - just like Fokkks.

[mamacat]

Now we know that the boys who brought us all those lies in the past haven't forgotten how they got W elected back in 2000, or how they started our war with Iraq.

There are times and actions which remind me why I no longer vote for Republicans. This Luntz clown telling more lies with a smirk on his face is disgusting.

[JazzyJim]

No kidding. He could have easily mentioned the bilking of our tax dollars by Haliburton and Black Water or the $4 Trillion in war costs the GOP have run up...but no, they want to take us down FURTHER.

[slvrfox857]

Exactly, JoanJacobs. I'm mad as hell about the lies about health reform, my joblesness and lack of health insurance, and Wall Street getting anything it wants-including swine flu shots before school children and pregnant women. I think we all need to be inoculated from those pigs on Wall Street, but I hope everyone on HufPost and everywhere else in the US will write or call Kathleen Sebelius' office, Obama's office, Geithner and Summer's offices and even Janet Napolitano's office to make our outrage about this most recent indignity known. I've heard of lots of banks being closed this year, but because of swine, not swine flu. I've heard of lots of schools in my state, Texas, being closed and healthy, athletic students dying or suffering terribly because of the effects of this virus. I don't remember a time since maybe, oh, 2003, when I was this angry at the government. And I'm a F#%&n liberal!!!!!!!

[batmancw]

Yeah, could there have been a WORSE "Public Relations" announcement than GSachs getting swine flu vaccine before schoolchildren? Sheesh!

[Jase84]

Exactly. Right wingers are delusional thinking we America is mad as he.// for the same reasons they're....

[Joan Jacobs]

The question is, What are Americans 'mad as hell' about? Is it the provisions in the health care bill, the lack of a single payer, the compromises that had to be made to get most (not all) Americans covered, or the length of time it took to accomplish it?

[houseafire]

Bingo....all of the above got my dander up :)

[ron071]

Who really believes that Frank Luntz is a legitimate " pollster " ? He is to data gathering what Fox is to news. Enough said . Let the records speak.

[JazzyJim]

Exactly. He discredited to. He's a loon from the Right as Bill O'Rielly would say.

[blisster]

the physiognomy of corporate corpulence.

[1laingirl]

Luntz is doing everything he possibly can to incite the loonies to be irrationally mad. Well, he doesn't know what mad and loud is because he hasn't heard yet how many of us progressives can get mad. We, however, will do it in a more intelligent and dignified way. A car can have more than one squeaky wheel. When the Reptilians say that the U.S. is the greatest country in the world, but they can't be talking about their constituents.

[eahce]

Question Are the progresive's really happy with the wall st welfare program? I ask in all sincerity. I believe I'm missing something.

[roblabrousse]

Bush is no longer in the WH to answer for that. Your next point?