Pollster: Republicans want a new Reagan, who will pull out of the United Nations, in 2008
"It's very interesting," says pollster and author Frank Luntz. "When you listen to voters in Iowa, New Hampshire, and other Republicans across the country, they're somewhat concerned at this point now...that the Republican nominee doesn't have what it takes to beat the likely Democratic nominee, [Senator] Hillary Clinton."
A panel of New Hampshire Republicans had these things to say to the Fox and Friends contingent this morning:
"I personally am looking for another Ronald Reagan...I just want to bring that--that, uh, Republican...aura back to the White House."
"Ron Reagan was the President that could work both sides of the aisle successfully, and bring closure to a lot of issues..."
"Although I'm a big supporter of Bush, he's made the Republicans so unpopular, and he's made the States in general so unpopular--whereas Ronald Reagan gave this golden era to being a Republican..."
As Reagan used the Panama Canal Treaty as his "issue," says Luntz, so can a 2008 candidate find that "issue." Suggests Luntz: Because the Republicans want to win in Iraq, and they want a "strong military," the issue they can use to keep the White House in 2008 is the United Nations.
The UN, says Luntz, "has not supported the American position" and was "hostile" in Iraq.
Says one of the New Hampshire citizen panel: "I have to believe that with this liberal media that we have, if the UN was doing good things for this country, we would have heard about it. But, they've demonstrated an anti-United States posture, they're--they're totally corrupt, and there's no, uh, there's no proof in the pudding that they're going to be willing to change that."
None of the New Hampshire voters had a "favorable impression" of the United Nations, nor did a single person believe the United States "gets its money's worth."
A unanimous show of hands, however, indicated that the doings of the UN "should be an issue."
"Incredible," segues Luntz, pointing to the United Nations as the GOP "sleeper issue," as determined by research done for Fox. Telling the UN "Enough is enough," says Luntz, is an issue the GOP can use to rally its base in the upcoming election.
"The Republican voters," continues Luntz, "are just so sick and tired of the UN taking positions against the US, and they're even angrier that taxpayers fund the UN."
The following video is from FOX's FOX and Friends, broadcast on September 23, 2007:
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