Thursday, April 05, 2007

WHY IS ZOGBY INTERNATIONAL DOING AN ANTI-CLINTON PUSH POLL FOR JUDICIAL WATCH?

Well, we know why Judicial Watch is doing it: to generate a phony "news story" that starts in the right-wing media but isn't meant to stay there. (And the coverage has begun: "Almost Half of Americans Fear Corruption if Clintons Return to White House, Poll Finds" at CNSNews.com, and similar stories at World Net Daily and Judicial Watch's own site. Surely a Drudge link can't be far behind, and then a link at the Politico....)

But what the hell is wrong with Zogby? I thought it was a respectable outfit, but check out these questions (PDF):

304. Some people believe that the Bill Clinton administration was corrupt. Whether or not you believe the Clinton administration was corrupt, how concerned are you that there will be high levels of corruption in the White House if Hillary Clinton is elected President in 2008?
Very concerned / Somewhat concerned / Not very concerned / Not at all concerned / Not sure

305. When thinking about Hillary Clinton as a politician, which of the following best describes her?
Very corrupt / Somewhat corrupt / Not very corrupt / Not at all corrupt / Not sure

306. Which of the following statements comes closer to you point of view – A or B?
Statement A: If Hillary Clinton is elected president, Bill Clinton cannot be trusted to behave honestly in the White House.
Statement B: If Hillary Clinton is elected president, Bill Clinton can be trusted to behave honestly in the White House.


Oh, and presumably for the Grover Norquist crowd, we have:

Do you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree with the following statement: Bigger government leads to more corruption?

This is garbage. This is a push poll.

At least a third of Americans, of course, always think politicians are more corrupt than ordinary citizens. Even with decidedly non-neutral questions, the numbers for the Clintons don't go much higher than the numbers for pols on average.

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