Is Hillary Clinton Push Polling?
North Carolina activist David LaMotte just got a push poll call from the firm of Geoff Garin, the new head of Hillary Clinton's campaign team. It wasn't as bad as asking "would it change your mind if you knew John Kerry actually bought his Vietnam medals off eBay." Or "How do you feel about John McCain's illegitimate black children?" But it was a push poll nonetheless, even if it also had elements of information gathering and message testing. This isn't the first time that the Clinton campaign or their allies have had pollsters offering positive information about Clinton and negative information about her opponents--they did it on the eve of the California primary and in South Carolina. (And firms linked to the Giuliani campaign made highly negative push poll calls against Mitt Romney in Iowa and New Hampshire) But it's a disturbing practice precisely because it tries to spin the recipient under the pretense of merely asking about their views, and from everything I can tell, it's a practice that Obama has avoided.
Here's LaMotte's story, following a clip from the actual call, which I'd highly recommend clicking and listening to.:
Press the play button to listen
[I've heard reports that the button above isn't always working, so yif it doesn't, you can also click here ]
A guy named Ed called from Akron, Ohio, and when I asked what polling outfit he works for he said Garin-Hart-Yang, based in DC At first I was delighted to be polled, as I've been interested in the race and following the rest of the nation's polls closely throughout the campaign.
The questions started out normal enough, but got progressively more ridiculous. Early in the conversation Ed asked my preference among the Democratic candidates and I told him I was an Obama supporter.
Then the questions turned to long Hillary-praising and Barack bashing policy statements with the response options being "Do you consider that a very strong, strong or weak or very weak reason to support her candidacy for president?" which is kind of an unanswerable question, and clearly not the point. At the end of the conversation they asked "Now based on everything we've discussed, who would you vote for?"
The questions were often based on statements that I wouldn't agree with in the first place. It's classic push polling as I've read about it, though never experienced it before. The questions are of the "Are you still beating your wife?" variety. No way to answer with any sense of veracity and integrity.
Toward the end of the conversation it occurred to me to record it on my old-school tape-based answering machine, so the following is a verbatim transcript of some of the content:
"Hillary Clinton knows that people are being squeezed by the rising costs of everyday items, especially the cost of a gallon of gas. People have been paying through the roof and at the pump, and she thinks it is time the oil companies paid their fair share. She wants to end their special tax breaks and use that money to invest in alternative energy that will create millions of new jobs. As president she will launch a full-scale investigation of the oil companies' price rigging. Upon taking office as president she will lower gas prices by taxing the excess profits of the oil companies and use that money to cut gas tax.
Do you consider that a very strong, strong or weak or very weak reason to support her candidacy for president?"
It goes on a bit later:
"I'm going to read you a few criticisms opponents might make about Barack Obama. For each one please tell me if they give you very major doubts, fairly major doubts, some doubts or no real doubts about supporting Barack Obama for president. At a time when we need leaders who are clear, strong and decisive, Obama has been inconsistent, saying he would remove all troops, but then indicating that he might not, and pledging to renegotiate NAFTA, but then sending signals that he would not actually do so as president. He supported George W. Bush's 2005 energy bill which payed six billion dollars in subsidies to the oil and gas industry, nine billion dollars in subsidies to the coal industry and twelve billion dollars in subsidies to the nuclear power industry. It was called 'a piñata of perks' and 'the best energy bill corporations could buy. Would that leave you with major doubts, some doubts or no real doubts?"
And how do I answer that question, given the fact that I dispute some of the premises laid out?
Didn't they already get embarrassed about push polling in the Midwest early in this campaign and didn't she repudiate the practice? I find this kind of thing pretty shocking, and I think people should know it's going on. It's demeaning and disheartening, especially given the fact that my civic pride was piqued by being called in the first place, only to realize I was being manipulated.
David LaMotte can be contacted at david [at] davidlamotte.com for further follow-up.
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Here's a link to the clip--the one in the article did not work for me.
http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/pushpollaudioclip.mp3
Push-Poll suggestion for Team Hillary in Indiana: "Does Barack Hussein Obama's being a Muslim extremist with ties to Hamas concern you?" Hill and Bill, if you're reading this: should we just
cut out all the foreplay and swear in President McCain right now? Y'know, so Hill can run in 2012?
Does this really surprise anyone? We in NY know this is just Clinton-as-usual. I cannot believe so many supporters of hers have been duped by these underhanded and dirty tactics.
We got these push poll calls often here in Iowa, all with similarly styled questions as above. Thankfully Iowans weren't duped--she finished THIRD here on January 3rd and even *lost* a delegate at our county conventions in March!
LOL...dupe-able people, her core includes the ignorant and fearful. Those are her most ardent supporters.
Isn't this just congruent with everything her campaign has been about: lies, exaggeration, manipulation, smear, racial inuendo, ridiculous sublminal messages cloaked in fear, etc. etc. etc.
I am so sick of the Rovian gutter politics that have come to define Hillary's campaign. After 8 years of the same political crap from George Bush, I would think we would all want to run Hillary out of town on a rail, for trying to impersonate him.
I guess some people still need to have their intelligence insulted further.
I can't wait til June, after she's wasted a few more of her supporters' millions on this charade, and she has deluded herself further, when the party leaders finally have to tell her the truth: that Obama has been the winner for weeks now and she has been in complete denial this whole time.
All these political dirty tricksand lies have just served to prove one truth that we already suspected: the Clintons lust for power and will do anything to have it.
We have the best candidate the democratic party has seen since the Kennedy era. Why would the democrats allow Hilary Clinton -- who has such a low probability of winning the nomination-- continue to discredit and sew seeds of doubt about the future nominee??? It serves no good purpose. I am a life-long democrat in my 50's who voted enthusiastically for Bill Clinton and this is getting me very discouraged.
What do you esxpect of the Clinton's. Until the dermocrats wake up and realiize that to the Clinton's, it is all about them and not the democratic party. The dems needs to say enough is enough. I read that the Rep Clayburn said that he heard that Clinton is doing this to make sure Obama does not win the general so she can come back in 2012. It is really sad that the feminst supporting her would rather go another 4years for the Supreme Court to be more conservative and the Unions to lose their clout.
Push Polling.....oh how so very republican of her....next thing she's going to do is start a whisper campaign that Senator...gaaaasp......fathered not one, but TWO african american children. The sad part is...there are people DUMB enough to fall for her crap.
Hillary is at it again relentlessly doing anything she possibly can to destroy Barack Obama. The people in her constituency I feel the most sorry for are elderly folks who believe all of her tripe. My mother is 80 years old and she can see through Hillary Clinton as clear as day. She calls her "the old rip". She has several friends who are about her age who believed the crap about Barack being a Muslim and the pathological obsession of the news media with the Reverend Wright soundbites. My mother responds to them by saying "oh b.s. have you ever thought to research the truth about his background as opposed to watching Fox News"? Mom is a big time Barack supporter and she knows that he will protect social security and that he cares deeply for senior citizens.
Good for your mom! My mom is in her late sixties, and my grandparents are 93, my great uncle is in his eighties, and our entire family young and old supports Barack Obama!!! Even my younger sister, who never was much interested in politics before.
Furthermore, I live in a neighborhood where there are many retirees (supposedly Hillary's group) and the majority support Barack as well!
We, like your mom and you, know the truth about Barack, as well as the truth about Hillary.
Obama 2008!
Si, Se Puede!
I would like to add a p.s. to my post.
Currently, Hillary as well as her minions are going around saying that Barack is "whining."
WHO was it that whined that the guys were "piling up' on her?
WHO was it that whined that she always has to answer first in debates?
WHO was it that whined that the press was giving Barack a free pass?
You are lucky. My parents and most of my siblings (5 of them) support Hillary. They consider me the wayward one. Hillary's negative campaign tactics and lies make her unacceptable for me, but my mom just says that's politics as usual. At least they were open-minded enough to be moved by Rev. Wright's patriotism, integrity and intelligence following his interview with Bill Moyers. I just wish that they could go one step further to see that Hillary has been demonizing him (Wright) in order to undermine Obama. How honest is that? That kind of deception undermined honest Al Gore and turned him into a liar. That kind of deception turned a true American Hero, John Kerry, into someone who didn't love his country and "shot himself in the butt" as one Republican told me. It is my opinion that supporters of the unsupportable (HIllary, George Bush) act out of either ignorance or delusion or possibly both. In the end the outcome is bad for the country and the world.
Is it sleazy, deceitful, manipulative, dishonest, unethical or any of the above; YES
ps - the call clip doesn't work
http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/pushpollaudioclip.mp3
Why would we expect anything less from this unscrupulous woman who, it is clear, will do anything to win no matter whom or what it harms, defames, destroys, etc? What's that quote about absolute power?
I am old as dirt. I have voted in every election of my adult life. I have never been so discouraged. It very much looks as if Clinton and McCain have the same puppet-masters. To whit, the military industrial complex (as named by Eisenhower in his famous "Good-bye, Suckers" speech). Washington insiders are moving the goal-posts so as to see to it that "anyone but Obama" wins.
Clinton has now started running the 2012 "I told you he was unelectable" campaign. From Clinton's pov, it does not matter if Obama or McCain wins (or loses). She will run against "whoever" in 2012. And in a related story....Sen. Chuck Shumer, it was reported yesterday in the Huffington Post, now says the U.S. is "not ready for National Health Care". That same article also points out Sen Clinton is on the all important Senate Finance Committee. It does not take much reading between the lines to see the threat. Either we accept health care reform on Clinton's terms (make buying health insurence from the same old companies mandatory) or we will not get any health care reform. D.C. is in the process of "Jimmy Cartering" Obama. Even if he does get elected, they intend to make his term impossible.
It is too bad you cannot read after all these years. It is Obama who is in favor of an insurance company giveaway. HE is the one who wants to use private insurers for health insurance.Clinton wants to cut them out completely by having uninsured Americans get access to the same health care plan that Obama and she have. Obama is either so stupid or cynical that he forgets that insurance companies are ALREADY regulated. It is so successful that we pay incredible premiums now. He wants to tax me more to pay for a government funded private insurance plans for the poor, while I have to pay almost $800/mo for health care. They will get better plans than I get, the insurance companies will get rich and I will still pay through the nose. THAT is NOT a plan.
There is a GOOD reason Elizabeth Edwards has endorsed Clinton's plan. As for being mandatory, you are so stupid that you forget that I am already in a mandatory plan. It is called the Medicare tax that I pay NOW, only I don't get to use it. It violates ALL principles of any kind of insurance to let people out of the insured pool. It is also why FICA is MANDATORY! I am glad to see that you agree with BUSH and the GOP in wanting to make such things voluntary. I suggest that you should switch parties.
Randyjet-Please stop the propaganda
Randyjet... you realize that no one believes you right? Everyone who is a supporter of Sen. Obama or on the fence knows that his plan is almost identical to hers with two major exceptions, no mandate for adults, and specific clauses that will help regulate the pricing of the private ensurers. Just in case you have bought into some of the hype and willful distortions of Sen. Clinton's Campaign, Sen. Obama's plan, the one which mimics the congressional health plan was in place and available on his website for viewing months before Sen. Clinton first discussed her own plan.
WOW ! HILLARY'S GOP IS SHOWING AGAIN.
Can someone tell me why anyone would vote for Hillary Clinton. Please make it a good reason. Not any of the crap she has spewed as experience, or "the Black Guy" being unelectable, or the fake vote count. Get rid of all the falsehoods, but do attempt to include the slimy elected delegates that back her. From my state there is Ed Rendell, who is your state's slimiest politician, is he/she backing Clinton? Losing on all fronts, lies, lies, and more lies to the public, fabricating statistics, causing divisions in our states and in the Democratic party. Agrees with NAFTA, except when anyone who lost his/her job is listening. Admires Senator Barack Obama, unless he's winning, or refuses to engage in the farce of a manipulated debate (after 21 freakin debates). Where is Mark Penn? Her Pastor? Members of the Weathermen Bill Clinton pardoned? Her flag pin? Bill's $800K from the Colombia deal? All the money supporters sent to fund the campaign? Her supeona for the Paul trial? The sniper fire? The unfair media? The tears? The voice she found and lost within a few days? All the Superdelegates she tried to blackmail? The (fill in the blank)?, Former staff members? Oh that's right they're working with Senator Obama now, (one or more may be moles)?
Trust No One, Senator Barack Obama, No One!
Seems like Hillary is already stirring up trouble and controversy. I sure hope we learned from the first time the Clintons' were in office. We all know we need a change. Let's hope she don't buy her way to the seat like our current "chief " ... Let us put an end to this power hungry, racist, regime and rebuild our government. My fingers will be crossed.
Remember when H. Clinton left the White House? She took one of the White House's sets of dishes and a set of silverware too. At the time the mdia was so happy to see the back of them and their scandals, it was dropped as a story. Besides... "hadn't they suffered enough?" Yeah. That was my attitude then. But now it can be said. They broke this old leftist's heart.
The only GOP showing is YOU since you take virtually ALL of the GOP slanders for good coin. I supported Edwards initially, but I then looked at Obama and Clinton's issues web site. It was NOT even close since Clinton was FAR better. I see that you have not bothered to do that. You can look at my post about the health care plan above.
I just saw Obama givng his energy plan on TV and I am outraged. I worked in the oil industry for years, and Clinton is so far superior to Obama it is pitiful. Clinton wants to dump lots of oil from the SPR onto the market to drive the price of oil down NOW. Obama again touts the BUSH oil plan that he voted for. THAT is NOT CHANGE! It is the OLD giveaway to the oil companies. The only difference is that Obama would do the same as Clinton in taxing the oil profits more. She on the other hand has a REAL understanding of the industry and what needs to be done. I can understand why Obama does NOT want to bring the price of oil down since he is taking lots of money from their executives. Doing what Clinton wants to do would cause the oil speculators who are driving the price up to take a bath financially. If you like high oil prices, vote for Obama. I never thought I would see a black man follow the policies of Jesse Jones!
so you'd like us to vote on a president based on their website? How about integrity and honesty? Or is it that you know your candidate would lose on those issues? Look at the polls.
I'm not sure how much of your statements about yourself to believe. First Mrs. Edwards has said she supports Sen. Clinton, but she has hinted that her husband may announce his support for a different candidate. She supports Sen. Clinton primarily for her health plan, and has said it is because of the mandates. Mandates, which she refuses to detail, that will punish anyone who does not purchase health care, but her plan also has exceedingly few steps to lower the price of health insurance.
As to energy plans, you obviously haven't read Sen. Obama's plan. As to your "oil industry" work it has given you no insight to the larger problem, dumping oil out of the strategic reserve is a false panacea. It MAY lower the prices of gasoline, but if it does so it will be for a limited time only, and once she ends the dumping, prices will jump, not rise, to where they were before and we will have hundreds of thousands of barrels of gasoline that will need to be replaced in the strategic reserve, meaning all the money we saved as civilians, our government will have to pony up... and guess who will be paying in the end... yep us, or our children.
To solve this your plan needs to be holistic. If you want to see what we need to drive down gasoline prices permanently check out http://www.barackobama.com/issues/pdf/EnergyFactSheet.pdf.
clinton will solve all our problems once we elect her president but before lthat check out how little she has done for the small towns (that are getting smaller) in NY State.
I love the one about her taking on the oil companies to save us money on gas. If she got out of the race that she has no chance of winning and stopped begging her supporters for cash to pay for her self-wrecked campaign. They could buy a tank or two which would save them something.
Havev you noticed how the Republicans are trying to lay the wood to Barack while praising Hillary Clinton? Why do you guys think that is? Listen, I know Hillary people don't want to hear this but there are things that republicans have on her that they know will cripple her in the general...She has baggage that they haven't presented to the pub to go through yet....That is why she is the apple of their eye right now. The republicans are trying to affect the Democratic primary for what?....Wake up people... wake up... and Hillary people need to look into Peter Paul... google it.. you tube it....it is not this guilt by association that they are trying with Obama... it is guilt by guilt stuff...
there are no
1. anti american statements
2. racists statements
3. Ant - working class
4. Bigot
5. "typical white" dismissal
and I can go and on that --- things they cannot attack hilalry w/ . I'll take anything they have to throw on her because she does not have the above qualities for them to throw at her, which are more damaging than anything they have on hilalry , which has not been vetted or is a re-hash.
Where you around for McCarthy and the HUAC? You're doing them proud carrying on the legacy.
Believe what you want but she will never get my vote. She is too dishonest, backstabbing and two-faced...........she is all yours
Independentjunkie - I am white, working class, female, single parent, bitter AND I voted for Obama. Voting for a Republicans like Hillery would be voting against my interest.
Hillary has not been fully vetted. She has never run for the highest office in the land before, therefore her previous and current mistakes must meet a different standard. I have no doubt we've only scraped the surface when it comes to her baggage.
We just recently found out how she resorts to lying to further her cause. We also just recently found out that she is self-serving. She doesn't care about the American people nearly as much as she cares about herself and her own agenda. (As if to say the Democratic party be damned. If I don't win the Presidency this year no other Democrat will.)
And based on recent stories, she just doesn't measure up to Obama. Her recent foreign policy gaffes alone serve to dismiss her as political fodder. The media isn't giving this enough attention because she has the media in her pocket. For example see this story on her tidal wave of gaffes regarding foreign affairs. Such mistakes are not good for America.
http://www.blog.newsweek.com/blogs/stumper/default.aspx
Her response to these is probably to cackle or lie. Not presidential. At least Sen. Obama has the decency and integrity to stand up, face the heat, and take our country to a higher level. Very Presidential.
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