Since this is what I do for a living (polling) I’m always looking for interesting polls. This blog caught my eye because it cited two CNN polls. The info isn’t totally up to date, but it’s still funny, especially considering the tantrums Republicans threw because President Obama shook Hugo Chevez’s hand and was cordial at the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago last week.
That’s because, despite Hugo Chavez’s best efforts, 90% of Americans never even think about Venezuela, and therefore have a blase, unthinking “I guess it’s pretty okay” attitude toward his country.
Exactly. I have seen polls where the average American doesn’t even know who fairly prominent American politicians like Harry Reid are. I would be surprised if the average American has any real knowledge of Venezuela or the political views of Hugo Chavez.
I’d say that’s true, but why should they care? The poll was asking about the country, not the leader of the country, and I never said that “Chavez more popular than Republicans.”
Maybe some of the poll responders think of Venezuela itself as a country that came back from the spiral of disaster. Maybe some of them think of it as a beautiful country with a diverse landscape. Maybe some just think of it as a country with a really cool name that’s fun to say and hear.
Maybe the main point is that nobody pays attention to Chavez unless Sean Penn goes down there to talk to him or Obama shakes his hand and accepts a book from him, and then the only people who pay attention are Republicans, and that nobody pays attention to Republicans (anymore) because they’re constantly crying wolf about meaningless and/or nonsensical shit. President Obama had the right answer for these particular critics, even if his numbers were off.