We know that people are mad as hell about their tax dollars going to bail out big banks and Wall Street, and then seeing the recipients of their hard-earned cash rewarding themselves with million-dollar bonuses.

We also know that the blowback from the bank bailouts is one reason why incumbents, especially the majority Democrats, are in great jeopardy of losing their jobs in November. People can’t vote out big bankers, but we are finding evidence that some people are voting with their bank accounts and moving their business to community banks and credit unions. A recent Zogby Interactive poll found 9% of U.S. adults have taken some of their business away from big banks as a protest.

Read all of John Zogby’s column at Forbes.com.

Paul John Zogby, economics

John Zogby and our very own blogger Zeljka Buturovic recently published an article in the National Review analyzing the political tendencies of self-described libertarians.  They suggest that overall, libertarians can be seen as a part of the conservative coalition.  For example, even while libertarians describe their ideology as “libertarian” (as opposed to progressive, liberal, conservative, or very conservative), when asked to identify their ideology on a 1-9 scale (with 1 being very liberal and 9 being very conservative), they are similar to those who call themselves conservative or very conservative. From the article:

We at Zogby ask two questions about ideology: a qualitative one, where people can choose a political label — progressive, liberal, moderate, conservative, very conservative, or libertarian — and a quantitative one, in which we ask them to position themselves on a 1–9 ideological scale, where 1 is extremely liberal and 9 is extremely conservative.

In all our surveys, almost all our respondents answer both questions. Our December 2009 survey results are typical. First, we found 2 percent of likely voters describing their ideology as “libertarian.” Second, over 90 percent of these self-described libertarians were willing to position themselves on a continuum between Left and Right — although they were free to say they were “something else” or “not sure.” Of those who answered the question, 89 percent chose 5 or higher, with most choosing 6, 7, or 8. Here are the average scores for various ideological groups on our 1–9 scale in our December survey:

	Average ideological score on a 1-9 scale
Progressive	1.7
Liberal	2.8
Moderate	4.8
Conservative	7.1
Very conservative	8.3
Libertarian	6.4
Total

What are your opinions on libertarians and libertarianism? Can it (or should it) be considered a separate political movement or political philosophy?

Katy John Zogby, politics politics

It seems like the last time the nation stood united politically was in the aftermath of Sept. 11, 2001. While we have not experienced another terrorist attack on U.S. soil since, the memory is still strong and has been revived by the failed attempt to bring down a Detroit-bound airliner and the upcoming trial of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed for his role in the 9-11 attacks.

Zogby International has polled various aspects of terrorism in the past month. On some questions about terrorism, we found the same partisan differences as we do on most major issues. However, there is a good deal of agreement across party lines and the demographic groups that normally lean to the left or right about what are reasonable measures to protect ourselves against terrorism.

Read all of John Zogby’s column about public attitudes on terrorism at Forbes.com.

Paul John Zogby, terrorism

When it comes to understanding the power of words and how to appeal to voters’ emotions, Republicans have consistently outmaneuvered Democrats, who have wrongly believed that people can’t help but agree with them once all the facts are presented.

The past three decades have shown that even on issues where voters may agree more with the Democrats, Republicans have still been able to hold their own and even win by successfully framing their arguments in ways that touch voters’ hearts and nerves. So now, when Democrats control government, they are having a hard time convincing voters to accept their legislation on health care and job creation, even with polling support. Case in point: A December Zogby Interactive poll found majority support for aspects of the stimulus bill passed last year, but opposition when we used the term “stimulus.”

Read all of John Zogby’s column at Forbes.com.

Paul John Zogby

All the numbers on holiday shopping aren’t in yet, but at this point it looks like the season will be much like last year’s. That is certainly not good news, but I suspect it won’t turn out as badly as it could have, given a lengthy recession and an unemployment rate exceeding 10%.

We know that November sales reports showed a modest 1.3% increase, which was more than expected. A Zogby Interactive survey completed last week found half of U.S. adults saying they planned to spend less this holiday season. That number is very similar to those we found asking the same question in telephone polls in both 2007 and 2008. So we should expect 2009 final holiday sales totals to not be very different than those of the two previous and weak buying seasons.

Read the rest of John Zogby column at Forbes.com.

Paul John Zogby, lifestyles

In this age of hyper-partisanship, winning elections requires a delicate balance of keeping the party base revved up while not alienating moderate voters who swing elections.

The recession and the unpopularity of former president George W. Bush made it easy for Democrats to achieve those goals and win both the White House and Congress. The 2010 midterm elections present a very different scenario and a more difficult challenge for the majority party.

Read all of John Zogby’s column at Forbes. com on why liberals may not work as hardfor Democrats  in 2010 as they did in 2008.

Paul John Zogby, elections, politics

Every week, John Zogby grades the performance of President Barack Obama for U.S. News and World Report. Read the full report card by clicking on the quote below.

Paul John Zogby, politics

Today, the politics of Afghanistan are Obama’s problem, and what he said during the campaign now gives him much less room to maneuver in Afghanistan, especially politically.

A Zogby Interactive poll of nearly 2,300 likely voters conducted Nov. 4-6 reinforces the dilemma Obama now faces with Afghanistan.

Read John Zogby’s column at Forbes.com that discusses the latest public opinion on the War in Afghanistan and finds several similarities to the Vietnam War.

Paul John Zogby, war elections, John Zogby, Obama, politics, war, zogby

So what did we learn from Tuesday’s elections? And what lessons should Democrats and Republicans draw from the results?

The big races resulted in Republican wins in the gubernatorial contests in New Jersey and Virginia, and the first win by a Democrat this century for the Congressional district that comprises most of northern New York State.

Read all of John Zogby’s take on Tuesday’s elections at Forbes.com.

Paul John Zogby, elections, politics elections, John Zogby, race, zogby

This may be an off-year election, but two governor’s races and one congressional district are making national news. From my perspective, there will be three themes coming out of Tuesday’s governor races in New Jersey and Virginia, and the election to fill a vacant House seat in northern New York state.

First, most elections are seen as a referendum on the president, and that’s especially true for Barack Obama, who in his first year in office is taking up major issues. Second, two of the races, for New Jersey governor and New York’s 23rd Congressional District seat, include third-party candidates, and how well they do will have significance. Third, the congressional election is splitting the national Republican Party, with some big names in the GOP backing the third-party candidate.

Read all of John Zogby’s thoughts on next week’s elections at Forbes.com.

Paul John Zogby, politics elections, John Zogby, Obama, race, zogby