Poll Surprise: Glenn Beck Is Almost As Admired As Nelson Mandela?
Twitchell
At the end of every year, Gallup asks Americans which men and women they most
admire. Today, they released their results, a number of which are surprising.
Gallup, and many news organizations, give top billing to the fact that Secretary
of State Hillary Clinton narrowly beat Sarah Palin as the Most Admired Woman.
President Barack Obama easily won the Most Admired Man title, with 30% of
mentions. But there�s a new and noteworthy addition to the list. You guessed it:
Glenn Beck, who came in fourth place.
The Most Admired Man results were as follows:
1. Barack Obama: 30%
2. George W. Bush: 4%
3. Nelson Mandela: 3%
4. Glenn Beck: 2%
5. Pope Benedict XVI: 2%
6. Rev. Billy Graham: 2%
7. Bill Gates: 2%
8. John McCain: 1%
9. George H.W. Bush: 1%
10. (tie) Bill Clinton: 1%
10. (tie) Tiger Woods: 1%
Since Bill Clinton and Tiger Woods (resist obvious joke�) were both listed as
tied for tenth place, and thereby separated from the other 1% winners, it�s fair
to assume that Glenn Beck got a solid fourth place with the �highest� of the 2%
shares. This puts him within spitting distance of #3 Nelson Mandela, who, you
know, brought down apartheid and everything.
Gallup�s fascinating further breakdown of the numbers shows that among
independents, Glenn Beck was the second-most admired man, behind only Obama.
(Though the gap is wide: 3% versus 25%.) Among Republicans, he slides back to
fifth place with three percent of total mentions, behind George W. Bush (11%),
Obama (7%), Pope Benedict XVI (4%), and Billy Graham (4%).
For a topic this broad and subjective, it�s debatable how much stock one should
put into a poll of 1,025 American adults conducted from December 11th to
December 13th, given the vagaries of the news cycle. That Tiger Woods� wife Elin
Nordegren Woods tied for ninth place among women (with German chancellor Angela
Merkel) shows how subject such a poll is to current events: it�s hard to imagine
her placing at any other time.
Still, Beck�s strong showing is testament to what a transformative year 2009 has
been for him. He began the year a virtual unknown, and ended it a ratings
juggernaut, a Glee punchline, and the leader of a movement.
Here�s the full Gallup poll
http://www.gallup.com/poll/124895/Clinton-Edges-Palin-Admired-Woman.aspx?CSTS=tagrss
, including their Most Admired Woman list and a deeper look at their
methodology.
Alexis Machine
news:hhgoe...@drn.newsguy.com:
> Still, Beck's strong showing is testament to what a transformative
> year 2009 has been for him. He began the year a virtual unknown, and
> ended it a ratings juggernaut, a Glee punchline, and the leader of a
> movement.
And one of the de-facto leaders of the GOP, along with those other two
fools Limbaugh and Palin. The Grand Old Party has become the Party of "No"
and a haven for extemists.
Big J
news:Xns9CF1C06CA93...@news.albasani.net:
And a party of hypocrisy. An example: their chorus of criticism for
Obama re: airline incident. Bush took six days before addressing the
shoebomer incident.
Big J
-----
http://news.yahoo.com/s/politico/20091230/pl_politico/31049
Eight years ago, a terrorist bomber�s attempt to blow up a transatlantic
airliner was thwarted by a group of passengers, an incident that revealed
some gaping holes in airline security just a few months after the attacks
of Sept. 11. But it was six days before President George W. Bush, then on
vacation, made any public remarks about the so-called shoe bomber,
Richard Reid, and there were virtually no complaints from the press or
any opposition Democrats that his response was sluggish or inadequate.
That stands in sharp contrast to the withering criticism President Barack
Obama has received from Republicans and some in the press for his
reaction to Friday�s incident on a Northwest Airlines flight heading for
Detroit.
Democrats have seized on the disparity and are making it a centerpiece of
their efforts to counter GOP attacks on the White House. �This hypocrisy
demonstrates Republicans are playing politics with issues of national
security and terrorism,� DNC spokesman Hari Sevugan said. �That they
would use this incident as an opportunity to fan partisan flames � tells
you all you need to know about how far the Republican Party has fallen
and how out of step with the American people they have become.�
The Democrats� counterattack is aimed largely at two Republican
congressmen who have been particularly critical of Obama, Reps. Pete
Hoekstra (R-Mich.) and Peter King (R-N.Y.). But neither GOP lawmaker
concedes applying a double standard to Obama.
But the similarities between last Friday�s incident and the attempted
shoe bombing in 2001 are striking.
This year�s attack came on Christmas. The attempt eight years ago took
place on Dec. 22. Obama was on vacation in Hawaii when the suspect, Omar
Abdulmutallab, allegedly used plastic explosives in his try to blow up
the Amsterdam-to-Detroit flight. Bush was at Camp David when Reid used
similar plastic explosives to try to blow up his Paris-to-Miami flight,
which diverted to Boston after the incident.
Like the Obama White House, the Bush White House told reporters the
president had been briefed on the incident and was following it closely.
While the Obama White House issued a background statement through a
senior administration official calling the incident an �attempted
terrorist attack� on the same day it took place, the early official
statements from Bush aides did not make the same explicit statement.
Bush did not address reporters about the Reid episode until December 28,
after he had traveled from Camp David to his ranch in Texas.
Democrats do not appear to have criticized Bush over the delay. Many were
wary of publicly clashing with the commander in chief, who was getting
lofty approval ratings after what appeared to be a successful military
campaign in Afghanistan. The media also seemed to have little interest in
pressing Bush about the bombing, or the fact that the incident had
revealed a previously unknown vulnerability in airplane security � that
shoes could be used to hide chemicals or explosive devices.
An Agence France-Presse story was one of the few to call attention to the
silence from Bush and other top officials.
�Four days after Richard Colvin Reid, 28, tried to set fire to his
explosives-laden shoes on a trans-Atlantic flight, neither the White
House nor other authorities had spoken officially on the alleged would-be
suicide bombing,� AFP wrote on Dec. 27, 2001.
During a wide-ranging 25-minute press availability with Bush the next
day, reporters asked more than 15 questions, including queries about the
president�s New Year�s Eve plans and a tree he�d planted. Bush was never
asked about Reid, but mentioned the attempt in passing.
�The shoe bomber was a case in point, where the country has been on
alert,� Bush said. �A stewardess on an American Airlines flight � or a
flight attendant on an American Airlines flight � was vigilant, saw
something amiss and responded. It's an indication that the culture of
America has shifted to one of alertness. And I'm grateful for the flight
attendant's response, as I'm sure the passengers on that airplane. But
we've got to be aware that there are still enemies to the country. And
our government is responding accordingly.�
While many congressional Republicans and their supporters have been
critical of Obama, Hoekstra and King have been the most ubiquitous,
becoming regulars on cable TV, providing details about the case at a time
the administration was still tight-lipped.
In an appearance Monday on WCBS-TV in New York, King said, �I'm
disappointed it's taken the president 72 hours to even address this
issue. Basically nobody, the president, the vice president, the attorney
general, nobody except [Homeland Security] Secretary [Janet] Napolitano
has come out. And she said yesterday everything worked well. What I hope
the president would do is treat this in a bipartisan way, acknowledge
that mistakes were made and promise we'll do all we can to make sure it
doesn't happen again."
And speaking Monday on Fox News, Hoekstra took a similar tack, arguing
that the slowness of Obama�s reaction showed terrorism wasn�t high on his
agenda. �On many other instances and occasions the president is out
front. He�s out front leading very early on a lot of different issues.
When it comes to terrorism to the threat to the homeland, the president
has decided to stay silent for 72 hours. He needs to explain that,� said
the Michigan Republican, who is the ranking member on the House
Intelligence Committee. �Why this is not a priority? It should be his No.
1 priority.�
Asked Tuesday about how Obama�s response differed from Bush�s, King said
it was his �recollection� that senior Bush Administration officials such
as Attorney General John Ashcroft did speak out about Reid�s case soon
after he was arrested. However, POLITICO could not locate any public
comment from Ashcroft before he held a press conference when Reid was
indicted nearly a month later.
�My point was there was no word coming from anyone except a press
handout,� King told POLITICO Tuesday. �It didn�t have to be the
president. I�d have been fine if it were Eric Holder or for that matter
[Homeland Security Secretary Janet] Napolitano. � There should be a face
for the administration. For the first 48 hours, nobody said a word.�
Asked about a double standard for Bush�s actions in 2001, a spokesman for
Hoekstra, John Truscott, said Tuesday the congressman was really
objecting more to the administration�s clamp-down on briefings to
Congress than about Obama�s public silence.
�I don�t think that�s an issue,� Truscott said. �One of the things the
congressman has been complaining about following the Fort Hood attack and
now this one, as ranking member of the intelligence committee, it�s very
difficult for him to get information. That lack of transparency has an
impact on the Hill.�
While the White House has dramatically ramped up Obama�s public profile
on the bombing, putting him on camera two days in a row to address the
issue, officials insist he was neither reluctant nor slow to react.
�The president has been very engaged on this, has been leading our
response effort, asking agencies to take a variety of steps including all
the steps he outlined,� National Security Council chief of staff Denis
McDonough told reporters Monday.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs was already booked for several
Sunday shows, but McDonough said that in light of Friday�s incident Obama
decided to send Napolitano out as well.
�We thought it made sense for him to handle it this way,� McDonough said.
�We don�t really have a standard operating procedure for when is best to
go out. � He recognizes that it�s very important that we communicate to
the American people what we know and the steps that we�re taking.�
An Obama White House spokesman declined to comment Tuesday on the
parallels with the 2001 incident.
While King and Hoekstra have repreatedly criticized Obama for his
response, former Bush aides and advisers have sidestepped the issue or
endorsed Obama�s approach.
On CNN�s "Larry King Live" on Monday night, former Homeland Security
Secretary Tom Ridge, who was a White House adviser at the time of Reid�s
attempted bombing, brushed aside a question about whether Obama should
have waited three days to speak out. �I'm going to leave that to the
White House. I think he had Secretary Napolitano out there speaking,�
Ridge said.
And over the weekend, former Bush pollster Matthew Dowd was asked if
Obama was correct when, like Bush, he held off speaking at the outset.
�Yes,� Dowd told Jake Tapper Sunday on ABC�s "This Week." �Part of the
problem here is that all the facts that you think are true at the
beginning turn out not to be true as the days go on."
Meanwhile, Sevugan also criticized Hoekstra for sending out a fundraising
e-mail that invoked the Christmas Day bombing attempt. �Raising money off
it is beyond the pale,� the DNC spokesman said.
Truscott, Hoekstra�s spokesman, dismissed criticism of his boss�s
terrorism-related fundraising appeal as part of an effort by Democrats to
undercut his gubernatorial bid.
�This is the hottest issue going right now. Everybody�s talking about
it�s the lead story in the news all across the country,� Truscott said.
�As a leading national expert on this issue, it�s certainly appropriate
to raise this issue as he talks about the leadership he could bring to
Michigan.�
Twitchell
>
>Alexis Machine <n...@email.you.moron> wrote in
>news:Xns9CF1C06CA93...@news.albasani.net:
>
>> Twitchell <Twitchel...@newsguy.com> wrote in
>> news:hhgoe...@drn.newsguy.com:
>>
>>> Still, Beck's strong showing is testament to what a transformative
>>> year 2009 has been for him. He began the year a virtual unknown, and
>>> ended it a ratings juggernaut, a Glee punchline, and the leader of a
>>> movement.
>>
>> And one of the de-facto leaders of the GOP, along with those other two
>> fools Limbaugh and Palin. The Grand Old Party has become the Party of
>> "No" and a haven for extemists.
>
>And a party of hypocrisy. An example: their chorus of criticism for
>Obama re: airline incident. Bush took six days before addressing the
>shoebomer incident.
>
>Big J
>
>-----
I'm watching RMaddow rake Cheney et al over the coals (yet again). It's as if
the Republicans have no memory of what Bush did (or didn't do) when they had the
White House.
twitch
Big J
news:hhh1r...@drn.newsguy.com:
IMO, the Republicans who are being hypocritical DO remember what Bush
did. But they are counting on their constituency, the people who listen
to Rush and Fox, on a) not remembering and b) not watching any credible
news organization which would highlight this hypocrisy.
In short, they know their audience: R'tards.
Big J
-----