As much as I think I'm in the mainstream ... and in the wake of Nov. 6, I've been feeling pretty damned "representative," and confident that the center of American politics is moving back to where I can call myself mainstream AND liberal, without getting funny and skeptical looks or an argument ... well, then something comes out that makes me realize how far we've got to go.
Those pollin' fools at Qunnipiac University came out today with the latest "national thermometer," and Rudy Giuliani, of all freaking people, is the person with the highest "warm and fuzzy" ranking, at 64.2.
More on the flip, natch ...
Barak Obama is second at 58.8, which is lovely ... until you look and see John McCain (57.7) and, incredibly, Condi Rice (56.1) right behind him ...
Followed by Big Dawg Bill ... and then Joe freakin' Lieberman!
Rounding out how 20 folks fared ...
- NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg - 51.1 (44)
- John Edwards - 49.9 (20)
- Sen. Hillary Clinton - 49 (1)
- N.M. Gov. Bill Richardson - 47.7 (65)
- Sen. Joseph Biden 47 (52)
- Nancy Pelosi 46.9 (34)
- Gov. Mitt Romney - 45.9 (64)
- Former VP Al Gore - 44.9 (3)
- President George Bush - 43.8 (1)
- Sen. Evan Bayh - 43.3 (75)
- Newt Gingrich - 42 (15)
- Sen. Bill Frist - 41.5 (53)
- Sen. Harry Reid - 41.2 (61)
- Sen. John Kerry - 39.6 (5)
The parenthetical number is the "I don't know enough about them to have an opinion" percentage. More on the methodology and for stat geeks at:
http://www.quinnipiac.edu/...
Here's how the question was asked:
"I'd like to get your feelings toward some of our political leaders and other people who have been in the news. I'll read the name of a person and I'd like you to rate that person using something called the feeling thermometer. You can choose any number between 0 and 100. The higher the number, the warmer or more favorable you feel toward that person, the lower the number, the colder or less favorable. If we come to a person who you haven't heard enough about to form an opinion, you don't need to rate the person. Just tell me and we'll move on to the next one ...
TREND: How do you feel about -- ? "
I find the numbers ... disturbing. Yeah, it's just a stupid poll, two years out, but ... well, wtf, you know? Did everyone forget what they just did already?