fbpx

USConstitution.net 2007 Survey Results – The U.S. Constitution Online – USConstitution.net

USConstitution.net 2007 Survey Results

This site has conducted an unscientific survey on various issues since July
of 1998. The results, while interesting in most cases, are to be taken with a
grain of salt – the results can easily be skewed by an individual or group of
individuals; the sample is, by nature, not representative (because it consists
only of Web users who visit my site and bother to view the survey page and
submit an opinion).

This page includes results from 2007. For results from other years, please
go to the Main Results Page.


Question 113 (December 2007): With the first primaries and
caucuses right around the corner, it is time for our first Presidential straw
poll. Which candidate would you vote for to run for President if you were asked
to vote today?

Response Count % Total % In Party
Democrats
Joe Biden 48 1.79 5.72
Hillary Clinton 250 9.35 29.80
Chris Dodd 10 0.37 1.19
John Edwards 106 3.96 12.63
Mike Gravel 9 0.34 1.07
Dennis Kucinich 89 3.33 10.61
Barak Obama 297 11.10 35.40
Bill Richardson 30 1.12 3.58
Republicans
Rudy Giuliani 103 3.85 6.28
Mike Huckabee 241 9.01 14.70
Duncan Hunter 22 0.82 1.34
Alan Keyes Due to an oversight, Keyes was not included in the straw poll.
John McCain 85 3.18 5.19
Ron Paul 877 32.79 53.51
Mitt Romney 175 6.54 10.68
Tom Tancredo 8 0.30 0.49
Fred Thompson 128 4.79 7.81
Constitution
Don Grundman 8 0.30 61.54
Diane Beall Templin 5 0.19 38.46
Green
Jared Ball 0
Elaine Brown 1 0.04 5.55
Paul Kangas 1 0.04 5.55
Jerry Kann 0
Cynthia McKinney 4 0.15 2.22
Kent Mesplay 1 0.04 5.55
Gail Parker 0
“Average Joe” Schriner 11 0.41 61.11
Kat Swift 0
Libertarian
Jim Burns 2 0.07 14.29
Dave Hollist 0
Dan Imperato 1 0.04 7.14
Bob Jackson 4 0.15 28.58
Mike Jingozian 1 0.04 7.14
Steve Kubby 1 0.04 7.14
Alden Link 1 0.04 7.14
Robert Milnes 3 0.11 21.43
George Phillies 1 0.04 7.14
Prohibition
Greg Amondson 2 0.07 28.57
Leroy Pletten 5 0.19 71.43
Socialist
Stewart Alexander 46 1.72 52.87
Brian Moore 41 1.53 47.13
Other
None of the Above 49 1.83
Total 2675 100.00

Question 112 (November 2007): On November 3, 2007,
Pakistani President General Pervez Musharraf declared martial law, suspended
the constitution, and invoked emergency powers across the country. This move
follows the return of popular opposition figure Benazir Bhutto and associated
unrest and terrorist acts. Additionally, when the Pakistani Supreme Court
refused to endorse the emergency measures, he dismissed the Supreme Court. What
should the U.S. response be?

Response Count Percentage
The U.S. has no business butting into Pakistan’s internal affairs.
Pakistan is a key ally in the war on terror and we need their full cooperation
– now’s no time to rock the boat.
117 31.62
We believe in the supremacy of the law, and we should seek allies who
agree with that principle. We need to pressure Musharraf to end martial law
quickly and work with him to restore order.
105 28.38
Pakistan differs from North Korea only in its rhetoric – we should cut
them off just as we have North Korea, at least until free and fair elections
are held.
60 16.22
I don’t really care about Pakistan. 88 23.78
Total 840 100.00

Question 111 (October 2007): [Note: this survey ran until
November 7] In March 2007, a federal appeals court struck down a highly
restrictive set of gun laws in Washington DC. The laws, in general, restrict
private ownership of guns within the district. The city defended the law by
saying that the protections of the 2nd Amendment
applied to state militas only. The District appealed the ruling to the Supreme
Court, which is scheduled to hear the case in its current term. This could be
the most significant gun case to reach the Court in over 70 years. What are
your feelings about regulation of gun ownership?

Response Count Percentage
States should be able to regulate guns in any way they wish, from
complete bans to unfettered access.
100 11.90
The 2nd Amendment should be incorporated as a protected “privilege or
immunity”, but the point of the 2nd was to protect militias from government
interference, so private ownership can still be banned.
71 8.45
The 2nd Amendment should be incorporated as a protected “privilege or
immunity”, and the point of the 2nd was to protect individual ownership, so the
Court should use this opportunity to overturn all restrictive gun laws.
562 66.90
Regardless, the 2nd is an anachronism. It should be replaced with a new
constitutional amendment that is written by and for a modern citizenry.
107 12.74
Total 840 100.00

Question 110 (September 2007): New Hampshire has held the
honor of holding the first primary in the nation each presidential cycle since
the 1950’s, an honor its law requires it maintain. Iowa’s caucus, typically
held a week before New Hampshire’s primary, has been a “first hurdle” since the
1970’s. More and more states are jockeying for a position in the early process,
and are moving their primaries into January, which could cause New Hampshire to
move its primary into December. Is the current primary system healthy?

Response Count Percentage
New Hampshire and Iowa got there first, and they should be able to
maintain their first-in-the-nation status.
24 10.26
All states should hold their primaries on the same day, just like the
final elections.
90 38.46
The country should be divided into geographic regions, and the
primaries in each region should be held a few weeks apart. Each cycle, a new
region could be first.
47 20.09
The country should be divided into classes of roughly the same number
of electoral votes, and each cycle, a new class gets to go first, with the
others following a few weeks behind, one class at a time.
23 9.83
The parties and states should be allowed to do whatever they want – New
Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation law is stupid and should be repealed.
50 21.37
Total 234 100.00

Question 109 (August 2007): Criticism of Attorney General
Alberto Gonzales, from both Democrats and Republicans, is mounting. The
President, however, is resolute in his support for Gonzales. What would you
like to see happen? Note: Gonzales announced his resignation on
08/27/2007.

Response Count Percentage
Nothing – the President is doing exactly the right thing standing by
his AG.
108 22.41
The President should see the light and fire
Gonzales
75 15.56
The Congress should hold more hearings 19 3.94
The Congress should impeach Gonzales 280 58.09
Total 482 100.00

Question 108 (July 2007) Each July, this survey will be
offered, allowing us to track, over time, the political persuasion of our
visitors. Questions are asked about party affiliation as well as economic and
social ranking on a scale of 1 to 9 (1 being very conservative and 9 being very
liberal).

Response Count Percentage Avg Econ Avg Soc
Other Parties 10 1.50
No Party 1 0.15
Communist Party 6 0.90 8.33 7.00
Constitution Party 27 4.05 3.59 3.37
Democratic Party 174 26.13 6.32 7.51
Green Party 23 3.45 5.74 7.78
Independent 140 21.02 4.68 5.86
Libertarian 86 12.91 2.62 5.81
Liberty Union 1 0.15 5.00 5.00
Natural Law 1 0.15 3.00 2.00
Reform Party 2 0.30 4.00 8.50
Republican Party 182 27.33 2.47 2.80
Socialist Party 13 1.95 7.69 8.38
Total 666 100.00 4.32 5.47

Notable “Other” parties: Ethical, American, Anarchist, Orange

Economics ranking:

Response Count Percentage Grouped
1 = Very Conservative 126 18.92 44.44
2 81 12.16
3 89 13.36
4 47 7.06 29.43
5 = Moderate 117 17.57
6 32 4.80
7 91 13.66 26.12
8 29 4.35
9 = Very Liberal 54 8.11

Social ranking:

Response Count Percentage Grouped
1 = Very Conservative 99 14.86 31.98
2 65 9.76
3 49 7.36
4 41 6.16 21.62
5 = Moderate 78 11.71
6 25 3.75
7 72 10.81 46.39
8 76 11.41
9 = Very Liberal 161 24.17

Question 107 (June 2007): The next major election is not
until November 2008 – but already, all parties are struggling to decide who to
put up for a candidate. This made us wonder – do you vote? And if not, why
not?

Response Count Percentage
I vote in almost every election I can, national, state, or
local.
216 86.06
I only vote in state elections. 2 0.80
I only vote in national elections. 5 1.99
I refuse to vote as a political statement. 8 3.19
I don’t vote because it is inconvenient. 2 0.80
I don’t vote because my vote does not matter. 10 3.98
I’m too lazy to vote. 8 3.19
Total 251 100.00

Question 106, May 2007 In March, 36 Vermont towns voted to
request that the state’s congressional delegation start impeachment proceedings
against President Bush and Vice President Cheney. In April, the Vermont Senate
voted to request the same, and similar measures were being debated in other
states. U.S. Representative John Murtha mentioned impeachment as one option
available to the Congress. Impeachment – what do you think?

Response Count Percentage
There are absolutely no grounds for impeachment. Any calls for
impeachment are pure politics.
189 26.00
Though the people and states have the right to call for impeachment,
there are many other things that can be done to check the power of the
president, and calls for impeachment are premature.
53 7.29
Impeachment is a valid tool to put pressure on the president to listen
to the public. It should be used as leverage.
88 12.10
Impeach now! 397 54.61
Total 727 100.00

Question 105, April 2007 What’s your opinion of the current
White House scandal surrounding Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and the
firings of United States Attorneys?

Response Count Percentage
The president has the right to fire any US Attorney for any reason at
any time, and that should be the end of the discussion.
231 41.92
Though US Attorneys serve at the pleasure of the president, the
conflicting statements coming from Gonzales and other Justice Department
officials show the department is in serious turmoil, and the Congress is right
to look into that.
90 16.33
Whether the firings were legal or not, the way it was handled shows
that Gonzales has no control over his own department – he should resign
immediately.
54 9.80
This is just another example of the incompetence of this
administration. I can’t wait until January 20, 2009.
176 31.94
Total 551 100.00

Question 104, March 2007 The Supreme Court heard arguments
against the President’s Faith Based Charity Initiatives in February. The
plaintiffs argue that the diversion of taxpayer money to religious
organizations for charity outreach is an unconstitutional violation of the
Establishment Clause. The government did not try to defend the program, instead
arguing that taxpayers don’t have standing to sue. What do you think?

Response Count Percentage
The government should not pass any public funds to any religious
organization under any circumstances.
157 49.53
The government should not give any public funds to a religious
organization that uses those funds to proselytise its message.
50 15.77
If a religious organization can do a better job of social services than
the government, we should support that.
85 26.81
The government must support religious organizations to ensure the
country’s collective soul is saved.
25 7.89
Total 317 100.00

Question 103, February 2007 The House quickly approved a
bill mandating a rise in the national minimum wage, but several proposals are
making their way through the Senate. What’s your opinion of the minimum
wage?

Response Count Percentage
There must be a federal minimum wage. 234 46.89
The federal government should not set minimum wages, but the states
should, if they choose to.
83 16.63
The government should stay out of the minimum wage business. Wages are
between employer and employee.
182 36.47
Total 499 100.00

Question 102, January 2007 At the end of December, 2006,
the Iraqi government executed Saddam Hussein for crimes against humanity. The
capture and prosecution of Hussein was one of the primary aims of the Iraq War.
Just a day later, news reports noted the 3000th American death in Iraq. Has it
been worth it?