Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Just the Facts, Ma'am: A Compendium of Liberal Fiction -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Sully- who wrote (79450)	5/4/2010 1:18:33 PM
From: Sully-	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 90947

NYT/CBS slant poll question, but people still support Arizona law By: Byron York Chief Political Correspondent 05/04/10 8:07 AM EDT The New York Times and CBS have released results of a new poll about the Arizona immigration law. This is how CBS reported its findings: <<< Despite their expectation that it will burden police departments and disproportionately affect certain ethnic groups, a slim majority of Americans believe the controversial illegal immigration measure recently signed into law in Arizona is “about right” in its approach, according to a newly-released CBS News/New York Times poll. >>> The Times reported the story this way: <<< [D]espite protests against Arizona’s stringent new immigration enforcement law, a majority of Americans support it, even though they say it may lead to racial profiling. >>> Both excerpts suggest that Times/CBS pollsters asked the question in a way that either incorporated criticism of the bill or mischaracterized its content, and sure enough, when you look up the question, you find this: <<< As you may know, the state of Arizona recently passed a law that gives the police the power to question anyone they suspect is in the country illegally, requires people to produce documents verifying their status if asked, and allows officers to detain anyone who cannot do so. Do you think this law goes too far in dealing with the issue of illegal immigration, doesn’t go far enough, or is it about right? >>> The question did not say that the law specifies that police questioning can take place only in the context of a “lawful stop, detention, or arrest.” The question did not touch on the law’s use of the phrase “reasonable suspicion,” nor did it say that “produce documents” means producing a driver’s license, which is a familiar experience for most Americans. Nevertheless, 51 percent of respondents said the bill is about right, while nine percent said it doesn’t go far enough, 34 percent said it goes too far and five percent didn’t know. So while the 51 percent who believe the bill is about right is indeed a slim majority, it is only a slim majority when you don’t consider the nine percent who believe it doesn’t go far enough. You could just as accurately say that 60 percent of those questioned say the bill is about right or doesn’t go far enough, while just 34 percent say it goes too far. Breaking the question’s results down by party, solid majorities of both Republicans and independents either support the law or say it doesn’t go far enough. For Republicans, the numbers are 67 percent support and nine percent doesn’t go far enough. For independents, it’s 51 percent support and ten percent doesn’t go far enough. Even among Democrats, there is significant support for the bill; 38 percent support it, while nine percent say it doesn’t go far enough. As for the poll’s other results: 78 percent say the U.S. “could be doing more” to stop the flow of illegal immigrants into the country; 89 percent say U.S. immigration policy should be fundamentally changed or completely rebuilt; 65 percent say illegal immigration is a very serious problem; and 74 percent say the presence of illegal immigrants weakens the U.S. economy. The message of the poll is that people support the Arizona law, even when it is described to them in a negative way. Given what we have heard in the last week, critics of the law may conclude that they will have to yell “Nazi,” “fascist” and “police state” even louder to get their message across. Read more at the Washington Examiner: washingtonexaminer.com