Ben Smith over at Politico blogs about a push polling effort in Iowa and how pollsters can be the barely hidden weapon in campaigning. The questions were about Hillary Clinton's support for Bush tax cuts, Barack Obama's acceptance of lobbyist and special interest cash and John Edwards "irresponsible rhetoric" about taking troops out of Iraq in a year if he's elected. Ben said the Eastern Iowa voter who took this call checked the caller ID, which listed a "phone bank called DRS Acquisitions". That's just the company doing the polling. That doesn't tell you who the client is.
Push polling has already got some negative attention in Iowa with Mike Huckabee having to distance himself from his own supporters and a group called Common Sense Issues. I love the Orwellian explanation from the group's executive director Patrick Davis who said the calls were "personalized educational artificial intelligence". Wow. Sounds like something that twisted parents would buy their kids for Christmas. A toy that says: "Hello, are you ready for your re-programming?"
But beyond the robo-calls, what poisonous fliers, direct mail and mall leaflets are voters in Iowa and New Hampshire seeing? Inquiring minds want to know. Leave a comment or a link to a photo about the ads you're seeing.
