LatinaLista — Listening to GOP leadership speak on any given Sunday morning public affairs program, I’m always a little incensed when I hear them volley the term “the American people” to justify their stand on issues: “The American people want a balanced budget and know the Ryan plan is the best” or “The American people want our border secure before we address immigration reform” or “The American people don’t want us to raise taxes (on the wealthy)” or …the list goes on.
The trouble is it becomes acutely obvious after a while that the GOP’s “American people” is highly discriminating — and now there’s a poll proving it.
The ninth quarterly Allstate-National Journal Heartland Monitor Poll released today asked respondents about their feelings about economic opportunity and their beliefs about the future of America.
While there were certain questions that showed an unified feeling among all those polled there were enough questions that underscored just how perspectives are divided along racial lines.
For example:
A plurality of whites (42%) say government is the problem, compared to only 25% of Hispanics, 17% of African-Americans, and 16% of Asians.
Whites (43% approve) are much less likely to approve of the president’s job performance than Hispanics (65%), Asians (70%), or African-Americans (90%).
Whites (34% Obama, 54% someone else) are the only group who would not vote to re-elect President Obama today. Obama wins with Asians (49%-25%), Hispanics (52%-36%), and African-Americans (89%-5%).
Ethnic and racial minorities are also much more likely to believe the country’s economy will improve over the next 12 months, including 86% of African-Americans, 80% of Asians, and 74% of Hispanics, compared to just 54% of whites.
And the smoking gun: When asked who do you trust more to develop solutions to the country’s economic challenges. The majority of whites, 41 percent, chose “Republicans in Congress” while 79 percent of blacks; 53 percent of Hispanics and 45 percent of Asians chose Obama.
At least the white respondents don’t entirely live in a bubble. When asked if minorities have too much, too little, or about the right amount of influence in the Republican Party, the majority of white respondents chose “too little.”
And that’s to be expected from a party that only represents the “American people” it wants to see.
