Introducing Voices of America

Voices of America, a new feature of this website, is a representative sampling of comments drawn from polling done for Our Common Purpose.

Perhaps taking their cue from the positive, non-partisan tone of the survey questions they just had been asked, most all respondents replied in similar fashion.  Some responses go so far as to be giddy.  One gets the impression that some of the authors yearn for what the 10 principles represent.

Good man good.

— Republican from Tinton Falls, N.J.

It is so good.

— Democrat from Dallas, Tex.

This needs to be done, now.

— Republican from Citrus Heights, Calif.

Very unlike the us versus them that we typically hear, the vast majority of respondents spoke in terms of what we need to do as a people, as a nation.

There is inspiration, hope and, yes, idealism in their comments.   Many reflect pride in what we are as a nation.  Even more believe we can and need to do better.  While there are doubters, most found it at once uplifting and challenging that we might agree upon a set of ideals for America.

Their comments will be displayed a half-dozen at a time in the banner at the top of the home page.  As the banner invites, you can offer your own comment by clicking on Join the Conversation.  The comments will be replaced each month by a new set.  Watch for them!

Positive Poll Results Keep Rolling In

American voters have continued to indicate strong agreement with the 10 Principles to Unite America in four surveys done over the course of the past year.

Even while the polling was conducted by Survey USA during some tense and difficult moments, a consistent percentage of Democrats, Republicans and independents said they are totally comfortable with the set of principles.

June 2020 (at the time of the George Floyd memorial services): 65%

October 2020 (just prior to the 2020 presidential election): 65%

January 2021 (shortly after the riot at the U.S. Capitol): 61%

May 2021 (100 days into the Biden presidency): 65%

In each of these surveys, most everyone else – ranging from 30% to 33% — registered as somewhat comfortable.  Only 5% to 6% said they were uncomfortable or weren’t sure.

The most popular principle continues to be #6 Equal Rights for All; Responsibilities for All.  In the four surveys it attracted strong agreement from 80 to 82% of voters in virtually equal numbers of Democrats, Republicans and independents.  Most everyone else somewhat agreed.

It is followed quite closely by #10 Education Is Crucial to Our Future (78% to 80%); #1 We’re Better United Than Divided (77% to 79%), and #4 We Are A Nation of Laws – That Need to be Equally Applicable to All (77% to 79%).

The least popular principle remains #9 New Opportunities Are Needed in Communities Across the Land, but even it gets strong agreement from a majority of voters (59% to 62%).

Honesty Tops Individual Values In Study By FixUS

Focus groups empaneled by FixUS have taken their crack at what values unite and divide us.

FixUS, an impressive offshoot of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget headquartered in Washington, D.C., “is committed to engaging fellow citizens to better understand and address our nation’s growing divisions, dysfunction, and distrust in our political system.”

The initiative fielded a nationwide poll last year followed by 13 focus groups held on Zoom concluding early this year.

The poll found strong agreement on values such as being honest (90%), hard-working (83%) and independent (80%).

The subsequent focus groups worried that problems of honesty, and the broader issues of truth and trustfulness, hinged on the media environment. “People want straightforward facts, but some found this was hard to find when there’s a lack of trusted information sources. In turn, people don’t agree on basic facts and therefore cannot be seen as honest,” the study reported.

Participants also pondered questions ranging from community safety to the meaning of patriotism to what “moonshot”-type undertaking could bring the country together. Learn more about the just-released study at United Locally | FixUS (fixusnow.org)

Mis-information Threatens Democracy

It comes as little surprise in an era marked by falsehoods, unproven assertions, conspiracy theories and allegations of “fake news” that voters regard mis-information as the biggest partisan-related threat to democracy.

Perhaps it also shouldn’t be surprising that Republicans and Democrats seem to feel, in almost equal numbers, that it’s the other side that’s being mis-informed.

Those are the findings of the latest public opinion poll conducted for Our Common Purpose by SurveyUSA during the week between impeachment and inauguration. As with the previous polls, the survey was of 1,500 voters nationwide.

Slightly more than 6 of 10 respondents (61%) chose mis-information from a list of five partisan-related threats. The tally was nearly equally split between Biden voters (65%) and Trump voters (61%).

The result was close to the same for all age groups, ethnicities, and regions of the country. Rural voters (69%) and college grads (66%) were even a little more inclined to hit on mis-information.

With respondents allowed to pick as many of the five choices as they thought appropriate, the next biggest threat (chosen by 56%) were “ever-worsening personal attacks” being made on each other. This was slightly more of a concern to Biden voters (60%) and women (62%) than to Trump voters (53%) and men (50%).

Mis-information and personal attacks were followed by “over-reaching politicians” (50%) and “hyper-partisanship” (32%). Only 22% of voters saw an “apathetic public” as a concern.

Biden’s Actions Belie The Words

Joe Biden made an impassioned plea for unity in his inaugural address, promising to put his whole soul into “bringing America together, uniting our people, and uniting our nation.”

A critically important sentiment – in poll after poll for Our Common Purpose, 80% of voters say we’re better united than divided – but actions speak louder than words.  Hardly had the new president finished saying all the right things when he signed a slew of executive orders that stuck a thumb in the eye of the other side.

Biden faces competing pressures:

• He must show he can get things done. Pundits love to track what each president achieves in his first 100 days in office.
• He must placate if not reward his constituents by putting in place the policy agenda they are expecting. Backers have no qualms whatsoever about playing the “we won, you lost” card to anyone who objects to this.
• On the other hand, he did promise to be “president for all Americans. I will fight as hard for those who did not support me as for those who did. We must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue. Rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal.”

Wishful thinking won’t get this done.  Unity is a difficult proposition that has to begin with at least some consultation of the opposing side.

A majority of the public understands this.  Our Common Purpose’s latest public opinion survey, conducted by SurveyUSA in the time period between impeachment and inauguration, shows 68% of voters recognize that to unify the country they need to combine their wishes with the views with others.  Only 18% expect to have it entirely their way.

Biden took the latter route.  He quickly introduced ambitious measures popular with Democrats and reversed policies favored by Republicans.  Predictably, the policy announcements have been greeted by howls of outrage from conservatives.  In that the GOP hardly has been a paragon of unity for the past four years, their hypocrisy does not go unnoticed.

Nonetheless it was Biden who made the promise.  When the president says one thing in a high-visibility speech and immediately does the opposite, he has no one else to blame for the credibility gap he has created for himself.

Is it any wonder that the public is distrustful, even cynical, toward politicians?

The Good, Bad, and Ugly

The past few months have shown there might be a corollary to principle #3: Our Great Democracy Is Only As Good As We Make It. We’ve seen that it also can be as bad as we make it.

The Good
Congress did not allow itself to be cowed by the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on January 6. Its members courageously returned to their chambers that very evening to certify the election of the new president of the United States. Our democratic traditions prevailed, barely.

The Bad
Diehard backers of the outgoing president resorted to violence and other despicable acts in storming the Capitol that day. Real damage was done. Five individuals were killed. Others, including the vice president of the United States, were threatened. Hallways and offices were desecrated.  Equally smudged were the reputation of the U.S. in the world and our own image of what our country represents.

The Ugly
The latest nationwide polling for Our Common Purpose indicates that the strife of the past few months has left considerable debris that could take a good long while to dissipate. Lowlights from the survey of 1,500 voters conducted by SurveyUSA from January 14-18 (in the week between impeachment and inauguration):

• Nearly one-half of Republicans (49%) remain convinced that fraud altered the result of the election. On the other hand, 16% saw it as a free and fair election while another 26% believe there was fraud but not enough to swing the outcome. The remaining 9% of Republicans aren’t sure.

• The strife of recent weeks hasn’t helped the cause of unity. A near majority (49%) of all voters believe it has hardened and deepened divisions. Republicans (61%) and independents (52%) are more inclined in this direction than Democrats (39%). By comparison, only 22% of all those polled believe the severity of the strife increased the willingness to address those divisions.

• The impact on our democracy is not a favorable one. A sizeable segment (30%) believes democracy is at dire risk. Another 38% believe it has been weakened but will survive. These assessments are shared fairly evenly among political affiliations.

• By comparison, few see much of any good that has come of this. A relatively small group (21%) believe democracy was tested in 2020 but remains strong. This sentiment tilts slightly more to Democrats (25%) than to Republicans (18%). Only a tiny fraction (6%) believe democracy has been strengthened.

• One positive note is the nearly non-existent support for the insurrectionists. Only 3%, including just 4% of Republicans, say they were justified in assaulting the Capitol.

Yet their actions have dangerous consequences and what could be long-lasting effects in the various ways listed above and more. We have to do better. Our Great Democracy Is Only As Good As We Make It. Unfortunately, it also can be as bad as we make it.

A ‘Time To Heal’ Will Take Work

“To everything there is a season: a time to build, a time to reap, and a time to sow and a time to heal” was Joe Biden’s version of the oft-quoted biblical passage in his election speech on Saturday evening.

“This,” he went on to declare, “is the time to heal in America.”

The sentiment is a noble one, a message that the nation needs to hear.  But it registers as much easier said than done.  Any assumption that partisans on the other side will automatically fall into step or even be susceptible to outreach is a leap of faith.

Donald Trump hasn’t even conceded the election.  One way or the other, it’s impossible to overlook that he received the support of 72 million Americans.   Much is made by Democrats of Biden’s lead in the popular vote – now running about 5.0 million.  The one big wrinkle being that almost the entire difference comes from one big state.  Take away California, and the two candidates finished in a dead heat across the rest of the country.

Those who want to believe that voters were holding their nose while voting for Trump are wrong.  In truth, according to polling done for Our Common Purpose by Survey USA, Trump generated more enthusiasm among his constituency than did Biden, which might be one of the reasons the election turned out so close.

The nationwide survey conducted two weeks before the election showed that 56% of Trump backers were voting for him with enthusiasm, 36% with approval, and only 7% with misgivings.  By comparison, 49% of Biden backers did so with enthusiasm, 40% with approval, and 10% with misgivings.  When it came to the policies that participants in the poll believed their respective candidates would enact, 49% of Trump voters were enthusiastic compared with 41% of Biden voters.  The Trump constituency isn’t going to go away.

The pending Biden administration dismisses or ignores all this at the peril of the nation.  There needs to be a reckoning, one side with the other.

Biden has a history from his senatorial days of working with those on the other side of the aisle.  In the present moment he gets kudos for intentionality.  Having made unity a mantra of his campaign, he drove home the point on Saturday night.  “It’s time to put away the harsh rhetoric, lower the temperature, see each other again, listen to each other again,” he implored.

Rather than trying to dismiss and ignore the other side, winner or loser, we need to acknowledge and listen.  This will take much more than lip service.  More than reaching out and making nice.  It requires a genuine understanding of the other side and then being open to a legitimate give and take.

Finding common purpose is possible.  It’s encouraging, for instance, that voters on both sides endorse the give and take represented in the 10 Principles to Unite America.  The same nationwide survey cited above shows that 69% of those who backed Trump with enthusiasm and 75% of those who backed Biden with enthusiasm – in other words each of their strongest backers – registered themselves “totally comfortable” with the set of ideals.

There is interest among many voters for working together.  The leaders of both parties would do well to heed Biden’s words on Saturday evening.

“I believe that this is part of the mandate given to us from the American people,” he said.  “They want us to cooperate in their interest, and that’s the choice I’ll make.  And I’ll call on Congress, Democrats and Republicans alike, to make that choice with me.”

Polls Show Strong Backing For Principles

Democrats and Republicans.  Biden backers and Trump backers.  White suburban women and black urban males.

In virtually every demographic and political category, two-thirds of voters said in a nationwide public opinion poll conducted in the days leading up to the election that they are “totally comfortable” with the 10 Principles to Unite America.

The survey is a repeat of one taken in early June on the days of the memorial service for George Floyd and slightly modified from one done in May as the nation debated reopening in the midst of the pandemic. The polls were conducted by SurveyUSA of separate sets of 1,500 registered voters each.

The overall percentages came out exactly the same in October as they did in June. In each, 65% of all respondents said they were totally comfortable with the principles, 30% somewhat comfortable, and the remaining 5% either not comfortable or not sure.  In sum, 95% are at some level comfortable with the principles.

In both polls, the percentages held regardless of political affiliation.  In the latest rendition, 65% of Republicans, 68% of Democrats, and 61% of independents said they were totally comfortable.

The most recent survey was undertaken to correlate the results with the race for president.  In this particular poll, which was in the field from Oct. 15 through Oct. 20, Joe Biden led Donald Trump by seven percentage points nationwide.  But when it came to the principles, 65% of Trump backers and 70% of Biden backers were totally comfortable with them.

The near-equal results held across gender, education level, income, religion, and urbanicity.  So for instance, 68% of black urban males and 66% of white suburban females were totally comfortable with the principles.

The only noticeable fall-off from those figures occurs among young adults, Asian-Americans and Native Americans, all of whom hover in the neighborhood of 50% totally comfortable.  Virtually all the remainder registered themselves somewhat comfortable.

In the case of each of those groups as well as Hispanics, there was a lower comfort level in October than in June, indicating perhaps their particular unease with events of the past four months.

Most of those polled understand that the principles are meant to be aspirational.  Two-thirds (67%) said they portray what the country could be.  Only 26% said they represent what the country already has achieved.

In addition to the overall evaluation of the 10 principles as a set of ideals, respondents were also asked their level of agreement with each of the principles taken individually.

Here again, the results in October mirrored June.  The 10 principles enjoy strong agreement ranging from 62% up to 80%.  Most everyone else “somewhat agrees” with them.  The figures remained virtually the same June to October for almost all of them.  The biggest change was a mere three percentage points.

The comfort levels with the 10 Principles to Unite America are consistent!

Conversation On Facebook

You’re invited to join a constructive dialogue to help flesh out each of the 10 Principles to Unite America.

The principles will be considered one at a time over the coming weeks on Facebook.  Please join us at https://www.facebook.com/ourcommonpurpose/