Stuff You Need To Know About The Tea Party

This is one of those no, but, stories. I'm no great fan of polls. Too often the questions are rigged to prove a point. Often, the methodology is flawed or the demographics selected biased. I take polls for what they are: A flashpoint that may or not reflect a trend.

And now the proverbial but.

The Economist, published by our Brit friends across the pond, publishes a poll that indicates 34% Americans believe the national economy is getting worse compared to 62% last year. I bet the naysayers didn't know that. A quarter of the public say the economy is getting better compared to 5% last year.

That's the meaty stuff.  Then the questions really get cool as the Economist explores the inner-sanctums of the Tea Party movement. Among the findings:

• 20% Americans, half Republicans, consider themselves part of the tea party movement.
• 88% tea partiers think Americans have a favorable view of them.
• 38% tea partiers say the economy is the most important issue while 23% say the budget deficit. Tea partiers more than any other group blame government spending as the cause harming the economy.
• More than 60% tea partiers rate Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck with the highest approval.
• 78% tea partiers do not like President Obama as a person while 9% favor his job performance.
• 85% tea partiers believe Obama is a socialist compared to 60% Republicans and 34% of all Americans.
• 20% tea partiers want their state to secede from the union while only 7% Americans would consider it.

On other issues:

• 14% of Americans say Obama is a "racist who hates white people" while 25% Republicans agree.

• 15% of Americans take the view that Obama should be impeached while 36% of Republicans and 44% of tea parties share that view. 

What I gleamed from the poll is that almost nine of 10 tea partiers are pretty full of themselves.

The poll was conducted before Palin told them they must decide to join either the Republican or Democratic Party if they wish to exert any political clout. Makes you wonder if they still approve of her by a 60% margin.