Republicans gain in party-favorability poll before midterms

NEWS AND OPINION:

In the great political popularity derby, Republicans are winning by a nose at the moment — a factor not often covered by the news media.

Here are a few details.

“Americans’ views of the two major U.S. political parties remain more negative than positive, but the Republican Party’s favorability is now slightly better than the Democratic Party’s. Both parties’ images have shifted slightly since last year, with the GOP’s favorable rating edging up four percentage points to 44% and the Democratic Party’s rating slipping by the same amount, to 39%,” reports Megan Brenan, an analyst for Gallup, which has released the findings.

A certain demographic appears to be lagging in this race.

“More than eight in 10 rank-and-file Republicans (87%) and Democrats (84%) view their own parties favorably. While Republicans’ favorable rating of the GOP is essentially unchanged from last year, Democrats’ rating of their own party has fallen eight points to the lowest reading of Joe Biden’s presidency,” Ms. Brenan said.

Republicans are still viewed as the better political party to protect the nation from international terrorism and military threats — and also better able to keep the country prosperous, she also noted.

“Given that Americans have historically rated the Democratic Party more favorably than the Republican Party, this year’s opposite finding may be of particular concern to the Democrats, who are trying to hold on to their House majority in the upcoming midterm elections,” Ms. Brenan said, though she also stressed that party favorability ratings are not necessarily related to positive election outcomes for either side.

See some more Gallup numbers and the poll’s particulars in the Poll du Jour at the column’s end.

FOR THE LEXICON

“The president’s wallet.”

This little phrase emerged Tuesday after Politico took a dig at Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis in a terse tweet, citing the Republican governor’s dismay with President Biden.

“DeSantis has been a critic of Biden on nearly every policy front. But he sure does like the president’s wallet,” Politico said, citing federal aid which went to the Sunshine State in recent years.

“Excuse me, it’s not the President’s wallet. That’s money taken from taxpayers (many of them in Florida) by Congress,” countered Rep. Thomas Massie, Kentucky Republican, also in a tweet.

AND SPEAKING OF WALLETS

It is actually possible to buy an official “Presidential Wallet.” No, really. It comes from the White House Gift Shop, which was established by President Harry S. Truman in 1946 and is also official.

The array of wearables, collectibles, drinkware and more is almost overwhelming. Simply visit WhiteHouseGiftShop.com and click on the “Products” icon and look under the letter P.

The White House wallet in question is leather, of course, features the official presidential seal, and is priced at $45. You can find it at this this page.

Everything else — bobbleheads, clocks, apparel, blankets, holiday ornaments and fancy pens — can be found under the aforementioned “Products” icon.

ALL FOR A TURN LANE

“Members of the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakama Nation and the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hold the federal government accountable for bulldozing their sacred site to add a turn lane to a nearby road in Oregon near Mount Hood,” advises Becket, a nonprofit, public-interest law firm dedicated to freedom of religion.

The case — Slockish v. U.S. Department of Transportation — is centered on Native American plaintiffs who are asking the Supreme Court to inform the federal government that it must consider all possible options for repairing the site — such as removing an embankment placed over an ancient burial ground, replanting trees, and allowing reconstruction of a sacred stone altar.

“Native American sacred sites should be given just as much respect and protection as churches, synagogues, mosques, and other houses of worship,” Luke Goodrich, vice president and senior counsel at Becket, said in a statement.

“It’s not the nineteenth century anymore, where the federal government can wantonly destroy Native American sacred sites without consequence; after this latest tragedy, the very least the government can do is to pursue every possible avenue for repairing this site and allowing the plaintiffs’ religious practices to resume,” Mr. Goodrich said.

Curious? Find this case and others at BecketLaw.org/cases.

FOXIFIED

In the week ending Sunday, Fox News emerged as the most-watched network in the entire cable realm during breaking news coverage of Hurricane Ian’s landfall.

In addition, Fox News also marked 85 consecutive weeks as the top-rated cable news network during the day and through prime time, according to Nielsen Media Research. The network also aired 86 of the top 100 cable news telecasts during the week, averaging 2.2 million primetime viewers daily. Competitor MSNBC had an audience of 2.1 million, while CNN drew 770,000.

“The Five” still dominates the numbers, weighing in with an average nightly audience of 3.3 million, closely followed by “Tucker Carlson Tonight” with 3.2 million and “Jesse Watters Primetime” with 2.8 million. And one more competition of note: “Sunday Night in America With Trey Gowdy” enjoyed an audience of 1.2 million, compared with CNN’s “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace,” which managed to attract 446,000.

POLL DU JOUR

• 57% of U.S. adults say the Republican Party is the better political party for dealing with security issues such as national military strength; 37% prefer the Democratic Party at dealing with security issues.

• 51% say the Republican Party is better at dealing with the economy; 41% say the Democratic Party is better at dealing with the economy.

• 44% have a favorable opinion of the Republican Party; 39% have a favorable opinion of the Democratic Party.

SOURCE: A Gallup Poll of 812 U.S. adults conducted Sept. 1-16 and released Monday.

• Contact Jennifer Harper at Jharper@washingtontimes.com.