According to the most recent New York Times/Siena survey, a solid majority of Americans think that democracy is under attack – and more than half of those who think that democracy is under attack believe the “mainstream media” is a “serious threat.”
The poll, which polled 792 registered voters between Oct. 9 and Oct. 12, asked respondents to choose one of the two statements that best matched their views — even if they did not exactly match: American democracy is currently at risk (71%); American democracy is not currently at risk (21%).
The poll then asked the 71% of those who thought democracy was under attack in the US to answer a couple more specific questions as to where they thought the greatest challenges were emerging from. The responses were as follows:
- Republicans: 28% see a severe threat, 39% see a slight threat, and 29% see no concern.
- Democrats: 33% see a serious threat, 30% see a slight threat, and 34% see no concern.
- Donald Trump: significant threat (45%), small threat (22%), and not a threat (31%).
- Joe Biden: big threat (38%), medium threat (22%), and not a threat (37%).
- Mainstream media: 59% see a serious threat, 25% see a slight threat, and 15% see no concern.
Fewer people (28%) said Republicans in general were a serious threat than Democrats (33%), but more people (45%) believed former President Donald Trump posed a major threat than President Joe Biden (38%). However, the mainstream media was ranked as the largest threat to democracy among the offered possibilities, with 59% of respondents calling it a serious threat and another 25% considering it a moderate threat.
The survey also touched on a variety of other subjects, showing, as many others have, that President Biden’s laser-like concentration on abortion and environmental issues as the midterm elections approach in November could result in a spectacular misfire.
According to the NYT/Siena poll, abortion was ranked fifth (4%) in importance, trailing the economy (26%), inflation (19%), the state of democracy (7%), and immigration (5%). Climate change (3%) came in sixth place, tied with “Trump/Republicans” and criminality.
The Democrats’ insistence on concentrating on matters that voters have repetitively ranked lower on their everyday list of worries appears to be influencing predictive polling results as well, as the most recent RealClearPolitics prediction maps show enough of a shift to give Republicans control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
