Media Leaves out Important Caveat in Unprecedented Gallup Lead for Republicans

Many media outlets trumpeted the largest lead in the generic ballot Gallup poll in history! As you'll see in this clip the anchor trumpets that since Gallup began polling in 1942 it has never seen a lead this big. Well not rally.  The important caveat that almost everyone ignored that was posted right on Gallup's website in the same article is that it is only unprecedented for Republicans.

From Gallup's article on the poll:

Large leads on the generic ballot are not unprecedented for Democrats. The widest generic ballot lead in Gallup's history was 32 points in the Democrats' favor, measured in July 1974, just prior to Republican President Richard Nixon's resignation over the Watergate scandal. This large margin illustrates Democrats' historic dominance over Republicans in registered voters' party identification in the decades since World War II. Democrats controlled the House of Representatives continually between 1955 and 1995, and routinely held generic ballot leads in the double digits during that period.


If this was not pointed out to you, you would think the biggest lead a party has ever had was 10 points. Of course by looking at the same article you see that the biggest lead isn't 10, its 32.  I find now that this is the biggest problem with the media. Its not what they put in their reporting its what they leave out.

Glenn Beck doesn't Think Obama's a Racist just not a Christian

After his rally on Saturday, Glenn Beck appeared the next day on Fox News Sunday where the host asked him if he regrets referring to the President as someone who has a deep seated hatred for white people. Beck replied that he does regret it and that he now realizes what he was really seeing was President Obama's theology. Beck then goes on to explain he believes that the theology the President follows isn't really Christian and that's what has bothered him.  It was really disturbing to me to see this because its a theme that has played out in American History over over.  Kennedy was eyed with suspicion because he was Catholic and many felt that he would be loyal to the pope over the nation and be at his beck and call.  Another important side note is at that time and still now many protestants don't consider Catholics to be real Christians.  The same fear rose but not as much with the candidacy  of Mitt Romney because he is Mormon.  Many Protestants and Catholics do not see Mormons as real Christians and many Evangelicals hold the view that they distort the Bible.  Glenn Beck is also Mormon and which is part of the reason I was surprised.  Beck's audience is largely made up of Conservative Evangelicals and I always wondered if he would ever delve into the subject of theology considering so many evangelicals hold such negative views of Mormon Theology.  On a side note, I personally believe that religion is an extremely personal belief and that no one has the right to question your beliefs and state they don't live up to their standard.