Maddow: Pew poll shows the public's striking opposition to spending cuts
Despite his woeful lack of popularity, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) loves speaking on behalf of "the American people." And wouldn't you know it, John Boehner is absolutely certain that the electorate agrees wholeheartedly with ... John Boehner. This is especially true in the fiscal debate, in which the nation's most powerful Republican conveniently ignores all available public opinion data to argue that "getting our spending under control" is "the number one priority for the American people."
There is, however, a quantifiable way of testing Boehner's boasts. Indeed, the Pew Research Center published a report (pdf) late last week that found that, nationwide, there's "little support
for cutting most programs."
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Now, I suspect Republican readers are thinking, "Well, that may be true, but the results are skewed by irresponsible Democrats who love spending. Take the liberals out of the equation and we'll see dramatically different results."
Except, that's not quite right, either. Even among self-identified Republicans, the only spending cuts that enjoy majority support are cuts to foreign aid and cuts to unemployment benefits. That's literally it. On everything else, GOP voters want spending levels to go up or remain the same.
http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2013/02/25/17087215-the-publics-striking-opposition-to-spending-cuts
Boehner is not the only republican to constantly spout the mantra that the public's number one priority is cutting spending, but he is one of the most visible. republicans follow the principle that repeating a lie a million times makes it into a truth.