Gallup Poll

Here’s an interesting Gallup poll to discuss:

PRINCETON, NJ — Americans are as likely to want Tea Party-backed Republican members of Congress to have the most influence over federal policies in the coming year as they are to prefer President Barack Obama. The Democratic leaders in Congress rank last in this regard, behind the Republican leaders. …

As if having two political parties vying for power in Congress in the next session won’t be challenging enough, the Tea Party movement has emerged as a potent third wheel with a legitimate claim for demanding a strong voice in decision making. While Americans’ preferences are generally splintered, they are more likely to want Tea Party Republicans, rather than either Republican or Democratic leaders, to direct the nation’s policy decisions — a fact the Republican leadership, in particular, apparently ignores at its peril. At the same time, the percentage of independents and traditional Republicans who are wary of an aggressive effort to reverse recently enacted Democratic policies is enough to result in more Americans fearing the Republicans will go too far in this regard than fearing they will not go far enough.

Look at the graphs after the jump: