The Silent Majority

It's a narrow majority, but according to Rasmussen, 51% of the population view Tea Parties favorably.

Fifty-one percent (51%) of Americans have a favorable view of the “tea parties” held nationwide last week, including 32% who say their view of the events is Very favorable.

Thirty-three percent (33%) hold an unfavorable opinion of the tea parties according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey. Fifteen percent (15%) are not sure.

While half the nation has a favorable opinion of last Wednesday’s events, the nation’s Political Class has a much dimmer view—just 13% of the political elite offered even a somewhat favorable assessment while 81% said the opposite. Among the Political Class, not a single survey respondent said they had a Very Favorable opinion of the events while 60% shared a Very Unfavorable assessment.

One-in-four adults (25%) say they personally know someone who attended a tea party protest. That figure includes just one percent (1%) of those in the Political Class.

[snip]

While 83% of Republicans and a plurality (49%) of unaffiliated Americans have a favorable view of the tea party protests, only 28% of Democrats say the same.

Only 25% know someone who actually attended a Tea Party - which is actually somewhat amazing, considering that far less than 1% of the population actually attended the April 15th round - but more than double that view them favorably. That means that as the Tea Parties begin to gain steam, and more and more people hear from friends how much fun they are, the attendance will pick up dramatically. It's also worth noting that 28% of Democrats have a favorable view. Another Rasmussen poll, the daily Presidential Tracking Poll, shows 84% of Democrats approve of Obama's job performance to date. Taking the two polls together, a pretty healthy chunk of Dems who are still enamored with The Messiah must also approve of Tea Parties. There are chinks in the armor...if we keep the pressure on, we can swing a bunch of wafflers.

It is also notable that only 13% of the "Political Class" view the Tea Parties favorably...still more evidence that it's not a Republican party sponsored phenomenon - indeed, the GOP is scared to death, as they should be.

New motto for the Tea Parties? FIRE THEM ALL!