[quote=dumbrenter]SK, I don’t want to get into a partisan argument. My point is pretty simple:
The Senators have a motivation to get re-elected. If they communicated wrong, they get punished by their states.
The media polls are run by folks whose motivation is unknown at the very least.
If you believe that the senators can get away by voting against something that “overwhelming majorities” support, you essentially are saying we are not living in a democracy.[/quote]
Where I think you’re wrong is that the polls aren’t, for the most part, done by the media. They’re done by polling firms, and while some of them do have political leanings, they still want to be right. Those that were wrong during the last polling cycle got excoriated, and will lose business the next time around. They get paid for right answers.
Example….Kelly Ayotte, Senator from New Hampshire, saw her approval rating drop by 15 points (based on a poll done by Public Policy Polling, one of the companies that was near the most accurate during the last election cycle), after her no vote. There will be ramifications.