Politicians Out Of Touch With Country

As we are in the middle of a massive recession, the question is no longer "ARE politicians out of touch with reality," but rather "HOW FAR are politicians out of touch?" The answer is... very.

As an example, as more and more analysts are predicting at least a "double-dip" recession and some are even predicting a "lost decade" with no economic growth, President Obama announced that not only is the recession over, but his policies ended it.
http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/obama-claims-to-have-already-gotten-america-out-of-economic-mess/

But he also says the midterm congressional elections could come down to “a choice between the policies that got us into this mess and my policies that got us out of this mess.”

The rest of us know it isn't true, but PresBo looks at our economy and thinks our troubles are over. The disconnect from reality is strikingly large. Add to this the recent Politico poll showing that the "political class" (those who live in DC, make more than $75k, have a college degree or better, and have a career as a politician or making public policy) is out of touch with mainstream America, and my point is made.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0710/39809.html

In their opinions on policy and politicians ranging from President Barack Obama to Sarah Palin, elites in Washington have a strikingly divergent outlook from the rest of the nation, according to a new POLITICO poll released Monday.

The survey also reveals to a surprising degree how those involved in the policymaking and the political process tend to have a much rosier view of the economy than does the rest of the nation — and, in some cases, dramatically different impressions of leading officeholders, political forces and priorities for governing.

Specifically, they are out of touch on the economy, taxes, and even the Tea Party.

Only 27 percent believe the country is headed in the right direction, compared with 61 percent who think the nation is on the wrong track. Likewise, when asked whether the national economy is heading down the right or wrong track, just 24 percent chose the right track, compared with65 percent for the wrong track.

Yet among the 227 Washington elites polled, more think the country is on the right track, 49 percent, than the wrong track, 45 percent. On the economy, 44 percent of elites think the country is on the right track, compared with 46 percent who believe it is not.

Fifty-three percent of the general public ranked taxes as a “very important” issue, while 37 percent of elites said the same.

Sixty-eight percent of Washington elites said the anti-tax tea party movement is a “fad” and that it will “go away soon.” Only 26 percent of the rest of the country agreed.

All of this does have one practical explanation, however. PresBo's policies have had a negative impact on the nation's economy, but Washington DC has pretty much escaped the worst effects of the recession.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0710/39851.html

The massive expansion of government under President Barack Obama has basically guaranteed a robust job market for policy professionals, regulators and contractors for years to come. The housing market, boosted by the large number of high-income earners in the area, many working in politics and government, is easily outpacing the markets in most of the country. And there are few signs of economic distress in hotels, restaurants or stores in the D.C. metro area.

As a result, there is a yawning gap between the American people and D.C.’s powerful when it comes to their economic reality — and their economic perceptions.

How bad is the situation? With unemployment topping out at 10.1% earlier this year and now sitting at 9.5% nationally (and peaking in some areas at well over 14%), the unemployment rate in DC ticked to a new high of 6%.

In May, unemployment in metro Washington hit 6 percent — an uptick from April’s rate for the area but well below the national average of 9.5 percent and far milder than the May rates of the shattered manufacturing towns of the Midwest, including Flint, Mich. (at 14.7 percent), Elkhart, Ind. (at 13.7 percent) and Rockford, Ill. (at 13.9 percent).

So the warped perceptions of the political class in DC does have a basis in reality... PresBo's policies have actually HELPED government growth, and is therefore insulating them from the way things are for the rest of us.

In other words, the King and royal court are doing fine while the peasants toil in the fields.

It's time to replace them all. And your chance is coming in November. Vote out the incumbents. Let's try to get rid of this entitlement mentality in our politicians that is causing us all so many problems.