GOPideas... ideas done right

The previous Republican administration and Republicans in Congress have often discussed an "ownership society," but have failed to convince Americans of the merits of this approach. Democrats then argue that Americans want government protection, implicitly arguing that if people were allowed to control their own assets, no other social safety net would exist. Republicans never effectively refuted this charge --- and Democrats now seem to be taking current political attitudes as a charge for more government.

However, underlying public opinion shows that a.) people believe they are in control of their own destiny, b.) they believe they can improve their economic standing c.) people improve their standing through hard work, education and ambition and d.) by a significant plurality, when given the choice between liberal, moderate or conservative, people classify themselves as political conservatives. Standard Republican dogma would lead to the conclusion that the only flaw in the "opportunity society" is the volume with which Republicans advocate it. And therein lies the problem.

Polling also shows that many Americans believe that they are playing a rigged game in which a person's destiny is directed by forces beyond their control. Furthermore, Americans see the mechanisms for getting ahead in society (education, stable health care) as becoming less accessible because of cost --- therefore making economic progress difficult.  Instead of extolling the virtues of the free market, Republicans should take pro-active steps to both provide the assets people need to achieve their dreams while also mitigating their fears. In other words, while the public may view government, as a whole, with skepticism, they do wish for government policies to advance their interests. These conclusions were derived from a survey done for the Economic Mobility Project by Greenberg-Quinlan and Public Opinion Strategies (Greenberg is the best Democratic pollster of the modern era and POS is a very respected GOP firm.) My synopsis follows and future posts will focus on the technical details of an asset agenda.

At the beginning of the survey, respondents were asked whether they were (or were not) in control of their own economic situation. By a margin of 74-25%, individuals responded that they were in control. However, when asked whether other Americans were in control of their own economic situation, by a margin of 53-45%, respondents stated that others were not. Within this juxtaposition is the root of both Republican obstinacy and Republican revival.

Republicans focus on the former number: that Americans believe that they can get ahead and, therefore, all government must do is get out of the way. However, the latter number shows that Americans also perceive that economic mobility is not available to all Americans. More troubling is the fact that these numbers are worse among African Americans and Hispanics, two demographics Republicans need to penetrate.

The best news is that by a margin of 79-16% Americans believe that people can improve their economic standing in America. Later in the survey, they asked whether respondents would have an easier or harder time achieving the "American Dream" than their parents. 50-42% it would be easier, but 63% of African Americans and 62% Hispanics believe it is easier. The splits are even more pronounced when asked whether it will be easier or harder for one's children to move up the economic ladder. African Americans overwhelmingly believe that their children will be better off, Hispanics are evenly split and whites are overwhelmingly negative.

The most important questions asked what respondents thought were the most important factors to improve one's economic status. Over 95% of all demographics responded that the following were important to improving economic status: good education, hard work, having ambition, having access to a quality K-12 education and staying healthy. Over 90% stated that a stable family environment was important. From a financial perspective, over 80% of all groups believe that having access to loans is important, with approximately the same number stating that growing up in a good neighborhood was important. 

From a messaging perspective, over 65% of all demographic groups stated that individual traits like hard work and drive are more important than impersonal factors like the economy, meaning that people are willing to accept responsibility. However, this willingness to accept responsibility does not allay their fears. When asked what factors they (personally) worry will prevent them from climbing the economic ladder, the top three concerns (with approximately the same percentage of respondents) are: job loss, rising cost of living and a significant health problem. For those who worry about class warfare, when respondents were asked whether it was more important to reduce inequality OR provide everyone a "fair chance" to improve their economic standing, respondents said that providing a "fair chance" was more important, by a margin of 71-21% --- and this response was consistent across ethnic groups. However, when asked if all Americans actually have a fair shot, only 56% stated that everyone had an opportunity, with a majority of African Americans stating that they did not believe that everyone had a shot. Yet, 66% of Hispanics agreed that everyone did have a chance.

When asked about specific policies they thought would be effective in providing opportunity for moving up the economic ladder, over 90% of all groups stated that making college more affordable, 90% said reducing crime, almost 90% said reducing the cost of health care, 90% thought assisting small businesses would be effective, 90% said increasing job training, 90% said making saving for retirement easier, and almost 90% said early childhood education and improving financial literacy, in one of the lowest scores, 80% thought tax cuts would be effective at improving economic position.

As a final note, although party identification skewed heavily to the Democrats, when asked to think in "political terms" whether they were liberal, moderate or conservative, 41% of all respondents considered themselves conservative. Most importantly, 34% of African Americans and 39% of Hispanics classified themselves as conservative.

The key takeaways from this survey are: an overwhelming number of Americans believe that they can improve their standing in life and that they are responsible for doing so. However, they identify specific policy areas in which they would accept government assistance because they believe that enhancing those areas would enhance their opportunities. By focusing the asset agenda on those areas, Republicans can seize a dual mantle: the party of both individual opportunity and individual assistance.