Instead of posting a narrative-driven diary laying the reponsibility for the voter enthusiasm gap squarely at the feet of the Obama administration, I am posting a diary backed up by empirical data to highlight the real factors driving the much talked about "enthusiasm gap" between the Republicans and Democrats in this year's midterms.
As I've said before, in comments and in a previous diary, the voter gap for the current midterms is largely driven by an excess of GOP enthusiam, not a deficiency of Democratic enthusiam. Looking at Gallup data trends from 1994 (During Bill Clinton's first term), up to 2010, it is evident that there is an usual spike in Republican enthusiam, something that is hardly talked about in the left and right media outlets. The current emphasis by some on the left (and the MSM) on the so-called failures and inadequacies of the Obama administration as the primary element behind the enthusiasm gap is specious, yet flawed and wholly unsupported by the data, and simply serves to maintain a narrative that is indulgent and makes for good internet and tv ratings.
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