# A coronavirus pandemic provides a HUGE opportunity for Democrats **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [February 28, 2020, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630 "2020-02-28T02:49:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 9
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/161 "2020-03-14T19:41:35Z")
Maybe not. **[Focus group: Minnesota swing voters view coronavirus as a financial issue](https://www.axios.com/focus-group-minnesota-coronavirus-05d3b5a2-559d-4178-9044-69d2d8866229.html)** > [@](#): > > While coronavirus infections and deaths are rising in the U.S., some swing voters in Edina, Minn., said they’re viewing this primarily as a financial threat — but they won’t blame President Trump if it triggers a recession. > \*\* > Why it matters\*\*: The responses show the complexity of how certain voters view the coronavirus, and they undermine the conventional wisdom that the president would be punished if a recession begins before the November election. > > ``` > [ul] > > ``` > > [li]This was the biggest takeaway from our Engagious/FPG focus group held Monday.[/li][li] The group included 10 voters who flipped from Barack Obama in 2012 to Trump in 2016 and one who switched from Mitt Romney in 2012 to Hillary Clinton in 2016.[/li][li] While a focus group is not a statistically significant sample like a poll, these responses show how some voters are thinking and talking about the 2020 election in crucial counties.[/li][/ul] > **What they’re saying** : These participants said they were not concerned about catching coronavirus, much less dying from it. But they were concerned about their financial investments taking a hit as a result of investor and consumer panic and disease containment practices, and they were uneasy about recent stock market hits. > > ``` > [ul] > > ``` > > [li]“All of a sudden, now, the bottom is just dropping out. They even stopper trading today it was that bad. So, to me, that’s alarming,” said Roger L., who also said he cancelled an upcoming cruise because of the virus.[/li][li] On Thursday morning, stocks fell more than 8% after reopening from a 15-minute trading halt for the second time this week. (The market then rebounded on Friday.)[/li][/ul] > In previous focus groups with Obama/Trump voters, we’ve heard that they’d be less likely to vote for Trump in November if the economy tanks. That wasn’t the case in this conversation, with participants indicating no president could be expected to control something with such sweeping, global reach. > > ``` > [ul] > > ``` > > [li]“I think he has a limited impact on the economy as a whole, especially in the world economy,” said Crystal T. “So I think coronavirus is a temporary thing. It’s not going to affect anything long term, and it wouldn’t affect my decision of voting for him or not.”[/li][li] Michael L. said Trump “would have a better idea of how to get us out of [a recession] than the other candidates.”[/li][li] Lisa L. echoed that sentiment, saying she’d trust Trump over the others. “At this point I think I’ll put my trust in him that he will get us out of it,” and if there was a recession because of coronavirus she would still vote for him in November.[/li][li] Others said they simply didn’t draw a correlation or negative association between Trump and coronavirus.[/li]… > [/ul] \*Formatting in original \* In this small sample’s eyes, trump is responsible for the economy when it’s good, but not so much when it tanks. :smack: Mr. Teflon. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2020, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/162 "2020-03-14T21:07:22Z")
:smack: This is why I say Democrats cannot be blamed for running a bad campaign if Trump wins (and that includes Hillary in 2016). If people are determined to be dipshits or worse, that’s on them and it just sucks for the rest of us. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/163 "2020-03-15T00:31:43Z")
The group included 10 voters… While a focus group is not a statistically significant sample like a poll… How big was the sample size? How heterogenous? Seems strange that they wouldn’t give the size of the group; it sounds too small to be significant. Every focus group I’ve worked with has had to be large. We have to get a robust sample size and demographics for it to be taken seriously. ---
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/164 "2020-03-15T01:02:07Z")
> [@digs](#): > > The group included 10 voters… > While a focus group is not a statistically significant sample like a poll… > > How big was the sample size? How heterogenous? Seems strange that they wouldn’t give the size of the group; it sounds too small to be significant. > > Every focus group I’ve worked with has had to be large. We have to get a robust sample size and demographics for it to be taken seriously. From the article: > [@](#): > > While a focus group is not a statistically significant sample like a poll, these responses show how some voters are thinking and talking about the 2020 election in crucial counties. This is ALL it claims. No more. It IS too small to be significant except as a reflection of how SOME VOTERS ARE THINKING. \*\*As is says in the article. \*\* ---
**Author:** ![poweroftheglory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/919ad9/32.png) [@poweroftheglory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/poweroftheglory)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/165 "2020-03-15T02:00:37Z")
Looking forward to President Biden working to make medical debt nondischargeable! ---
**Author:** ![Tatterdemalion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/43a26b/32.png) [@Tatterdemalion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tatterdemalion)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/166 "2020-03-15T02:16:06Z")
> [@poweroftheglory](#): > > Looking forward to President Biden working to make medical debt nondischargeable! Is that his plan? Honestly, I hadn’t heard that. If it is, it would make it real hard to vote for him. ---
**Author:** ![poweroftheglory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/919ad9/32.png) [@poweroftheglory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/poweroftheglory)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/167 "2020-03-15T02:18:03Z")
> [@Tatterdemalion](#): > > Is that his plan? Honestly, I hadn’t heard that. If it is, it would make it real hard to vote for him. I’m not being serious. I just have no faith in the Democratic Party. ---
**Author:** ![Aspenglow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspenglow/32/76_2.png) [@Aspenglow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspenglow)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/168 "2020-03-15T02:56:07Z")
> [@poweroftheglory](#): > > I’m not being serious. I just have no faith in the Democratic Party. Obviously. And no one would mistake you for a Democrat. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [March 15, 2020, 10:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/169 "2020-03-15T10:41:11Z")
Right now, I’m spitting mad at both parties. The GOP for being evil, and the Dems for not getting the word out. The bill the House just passed with White House approval was likely the best the Dems could do if they wanted to get something passed right away, and let’s face it, time is of the essence here. But it contains [two **HUGE** exceptions to the paid sick leave requirement](https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/14/opinion/coronavirus-pelosi-sick-leave.html): employers with 50 or fewer employees can file for a hardship exemption (there’s at least an argument for this), and **employers with 500 or more employees**. When Pelosi announced this deal, she should have been angry AF about this, rather than pretending it didn’t exist. There should have been nobody even arguing for an exemption for big businesses. **Nobody.** _GOP_ motherfucking _delenda est._ Every Dem on the Sunday political shows this morning should be talking about this, talking about how incredibly EVIL the Republicans are that there’s even a question about this. God _damn_, Dems, stop treating Republicans like decent people who happen to disagree with you! The things they disagree with you over are quite often matters of good and evil - and when that’s the case, you should be making no bones about it. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/170 "2020-03-16T07:03:31Z")
My impression is that the exemption for the biggest corporations was not forced on Democrats, but something Pelosi defends because corporations that big can afford to do it themselves without depending on the government to fund it. Which I think has merit. ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/171 "2020-03-16T12:18:53Z")
> [@SlackerInc](#): > > The strange thing is that, as one of the panelists on the National Review Editors podcast lamented this week, for someone who might be “the greatest showman in political history”, Trump is astoundingly bad at “playing the game” that Florida governors know so well, of standing up behind a podium with a group of experts and administrators and at least \*pretending \*to be commanding and reassuring. Trump is a “showman” in the cheapest sense of the word. He’s a two-bit carnival gasbag, flimflamming whatever fool walks by. (Just listen to him talk.) He has a reptilian sense of the self-entitled grievance that fools often have, and he appeals to that in the way a lizard automatically sticks out its tongue to catch flies. It’s not that Trump is such a great showman so much as there’s a fool born every minute. ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Kearsen1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen1)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/172 "2020-03-16T15:22:36Z")
> [@guizot](#): > > Trump is a “showman” in the cheapest sense of the word. He’s a two-bit carnival gasbag, flimflamming whatever fool walks by. (Just listen to him talk.) He has a reptilian sense of the self-entitled grievance that fools often have, and he appeals to that in the way a lizard automatically sticks out its tongue to catch flies. > > It’s not that Trump is such a great showman so much as there’s a fool born every minute. All politicians are showmen, sleight of hand tricks, telling “lies”, letting people believe untruths. All to stay in power. All of them. Turn the lights on them all and they all run for the nearest cover, like cockroaches. Find a honest politician and I will find you one that doesn’t hold office very long. There is a structural failure in politics. My personal opinion is the massive amount of money flowing through and to them. GET RID OF THE MONEY ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 7:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/173 "2020-03-17T07:25:34Z")
> [@Kearsen1](#): > > All politicians are showmen, sleight of hand tricks, telling “lies”, letting people believe untruths. All to stay in power. > > All of them. Turn the lights on them all and they all run for the nearest cover, like cockroaches. > > Find a honest politician and I will find you one that doesn’t hold office very long. There is a structural failure in politics. > > My personal opinion is the massive amount of money flowing through and to them. > > GET RID OF THE MONEY Not all to the same degree. And some at least improve how the government runs. We’re seeing what happens when one who doesn’t even try gets into office–the most abject case we’ve had so far. We’re seeing the difference right now. Someone has to run the government while you work on your plan to get the money out. (When are you going to finish that?) ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2020, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630/174 "2020-03-18T02:27:20Z")
Hear, hear. Now Trump is claiming he knew it was a pandemic before anyone else did. :mad: We CANNOT let him stuff reality down Big Brother’s memory hole! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-coronavirus-pandemic-provides-a-huge-opportunity-for-democrats/848630.md?page=8)