No News is Good News

Democrats in many districts aren't disclosing their polls, which would be the usual practice if there was anything remotely reassuring about the data. Make the contrary inference.

The members who conducted polling are among the GOP's top targets this year. Reps. Mark Schauer (D-MI), Earl Pomeroy (D-ND), Chet Edwards (R-TX)*, Ike Skelton (D-MO), Rick Boucher (D-VA) and Chris Carney (D-PA) were among those who paid for polling.

The campaigns involved largely refused to discuss their internal polling, citing policies against revealing internal strategy. Megan Jacobs, a spokesperson for Edwards' campaign, pointed to a strategy memo arguing Edwards' campaign is far ahead, but the memo doesn't cite poll numbers.

Spokespeople for Schauer, Pomeroy, Skelton, Boucher and Carney, along with a dozen other members of Congress, did not return calls or emails seeking comment about their surveys.

But members and candidates will frequently release polls when doing so would help boost fundraising or drive a favorable narrative about their race. As rumors fly almost daily about another internal survey that shows an incumbent in tenuous position, Dems leaving some surveys unreported makes GOPers believe those polls show bad news.

Common feature of many of the listed Democratic names (Carney, Shauer, Pomeroy, etc.): they initially wavered on ObamaCare, but ultimately voted in favor of the unpopular healthcare overhaul...after Democratic leadership promised that it would help them with reelection. Oops.

Oh, and who could have guessed that Democrats in an election year would make noises from their face flaps that sound like Republicans?

*Commenter Naqamel points out that Chet Edwards is a Democrat. The typo is in the original and I'm sure it's a typo. The immediately preceding sentence identifies what follows as GOP targets. Still, good eye, Naq, I've got some stuff you can edit.

posted by Gabriel Malor at 09:50 AM

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