Americans contradict Colin Powell: Not eager to join Barack’s spending spree

Fox news reports poll findings:

The Obama administration consistently uses the word "invest" or "investment" instead of government "spending." Even so, most Americans don’t make the distinction as fully 78 percent say it means spending their tax dollars, not saving them.

In addition, 54 percent of voters think the Obama administration is proposing too much of an increase in government spending, while 6 percent say not enough. About a third — 35 percent — says the spending is "about right."

A majority of Democrats (61 percent) think the president’s proposed spending is about right, while majorities of Republicans (85 percent) and independents (61 percent) think there is too much of an increase.

The flip side of government spending is budget cuts, and the poll finds 6 in 10 think President Obama is not cutting enough waste from government, including 84 percent of Republicans, 66 percent of independents and 38 percent of Democrats.

These are just some of the findings from a FOX News poll released Friday.

Given Obama’s criticism of the Bush administration deficits during the presidential campaign, some 28 percent of Americans say they are surprised Obama is increasing the nation’s deficit. More than twice as many — 68 percent — are not surprised.

Former Secretary of State Colin Powell recently made news by saying that Americans "want more government in their life." Americans disagree. Most — 71 percent — say they want less government in their life. A much smaller number (17 percent) fall in the category described by Powell.

If you add Independents to Republicans, you have a majority.  I look forward to 2010.

Meanwhile Barack is trying to use conservative lingo to disguise his intentions to tax and spend our way into submission, saying long-term debt is “unsustainable” .  We can pretty much guess at what his solutions will be:  Higher taxes on the greedy “rich”, Big Oil and other eevil corporations, and Universal BarackCare as a way to “cut health care costs”.

Believe.

Update:

1. The Other McCain wisely opines:

My guess is that this "debt is bad" line is not about cutting spending. It’s about raising taxes.

That is to say, if we assume that this speech about "unsustainable" debt signals a new theme that will become part of the administration’s economic policy, Obama can only be laying the groundwork for massive tax hikes:

• A. We can’t keep borrowing money, because that will "have a dampening effect on our economy";
• B. However, we can’t cut entitlement spending, because that would hurt poor people and old people who are dependent on federal aid;Ergo . . .
• C. We must raise taxes on "the rich," who "aren’t paying their fair share."

And if any critic dares to point out that raising taxes will also "have a dampening effect," Obama will be prepared to accuse them of fiscal irresponsibility. This is essentially a repeat of what Walter Mondale did in his 1984 presidential campaign, when he promised to raise taxes, trying to cast the tax-cutting Reagan as a reckless spendthrift.

2.  Jamie Wearing Fool offers this sagacious advice:

Now if the Republicans have the brains to focus on a coherent message the results of this poll can help formulate a strategy for 2010. They can start by luring the independent vote.

Clearly, the worst thing we can do is follow one misguided Californian’s interpretation of the “Rahm Blueprint”:

California Representative Kevin McCarthy, the chief recruiter for House Republicans, said he wants his party to select candidates based less on ideology and more on their chances of winning. The goal, he said, is to seek out prospects who are ethnically diverse, female, less partisan and even supportive of abortion rights. So far, these efforts are more concept than reality.

Who did Rahm Emanuel recruit?:

Candidates he recruited won in Republican districts by holding positions uncommon for Democrats such as opposition to abortion and support for gun rights.