Recent policymaking history aside, common discussions of the parties suggest that there are differences in the perceived willingness of Democrats and Republicans to deal with the deficit. In light of these perceived differences, we sought to understand whether members of the public really do distinguish between the likely consequences of future Democratic or Republican control of the institutions of policymaking. To do so, we asked a sample of 1000 YouGov respondents to answer this question: Following the general election in November 2012, [the Republicans could control the House, Senate, and presidency / the Democrats could control the House, Senate, and ... read more

Attitudes about tax policy are an important aspect of the dynamics of public opinion about how best to deal with the current federal deficit and the looming increases in spending associated with entitlement programs like Medicare. Democratic and Republican politicians have staked out different positions on the question of whether taxes in general ought to rise, and who in particular should bear the burden of those increases. With that posturing in mind, it is useful to understand exactly what Americans think tax rates should be. In light of those debates, we fielded the following question about marginal tax rates: Typically, ... read more