WRAL poll: Voters — even Republicans — give thumbs-down to NCGA

Voters gave Republicans a majority in the NC General Assembly and a clear mandate to cut government and taxes in 2010. Two years later, we’ve got minimal cuts in government and NOTHING in the way of tax relief.  We’ve got legislators close to the Speaker having their ethics questioned.  (Are Black and Basnight STILL in town?)

In the midst of a nightmarish economy and record unemployment, the Republican majority got us a referendum on a constitutional amendment about MARRIAGE. 

 This doesn’t look like the radical change voters were looking for in Raleigh.  A new poll by WRAL indicates widespread displeasure with the crew on Jones Street — EVEN AMONG REPUBLICANS:

Republicans won control of the North Carolina General Assembly in 2010 for the first time in more than a century, but voters don’t think they’re doing a good job in charge, according to a new WRAL News poll.

SurveyUSA polled 1,703 registered voters last Friday through Tuesday and found that state lawmakers have a 22 percent approval rating. Fifty-four percent disapprove of the job the legislature is doing, while 24 percent aren’t sure whether they like the way the General Assembly is operating or not.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.

Lawmakers were so universally panned in the poll that even 51 percent of registered Republicans disapprove of the GOP-led legislature, according to the poll. That’s almost equal to the 58 percent of Democrats and independents who disapprove.

The approval rating among men is 26 percent, while its 19 percent among women. Black voters, who traditionally favor Democrats, gave the General Assembly a higher approval rating than whites, at 26 percent versus 21 percent.

Although older voters usually trend more conservative, they are apparently more dissatisfied with lawmakers than younger ones, according to the poll. The approval rating dropped from 26 percent among 18- to 34-year-olds to 19 percent among those 65 and older.

About half of those who identify themselves as conservative disapprove of the General Assembly’s job performance, compared with more than two-thirds of those calling themselves liberal. Fifty-three percent of moderates disapprove, as do 47 percent of voters in the tea party movement.

One red flag about this poll is its use of “registered voters.”  Polling “likely voters” is much more accurate, because you are questioning people who DO vote.

It ought to scare legislative leaders to death that half of Republicans are not approving of the legislature’s performance.   Sitting on the lead and running out the clock will not work in this day and age.  People are mad and frustrated and they want action NOW.

Cut back the government leviathan and get the bureaucracy off of people’s backs.  Freeing up the people to keep more of their own money — and take risks with it — is the BEST way to jump-start the economy and get North Carolina moving forward again.