OWS Now Twice as Popular as the Tea Party

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Here are the results of the latest Time magazine poll in handy chart form. At least for now, the Occupy Wall Street folks are way, way, way more popular than the Tea Party. And why not? In other questions:

  • 86% agree that Wall Street and its lobbyists have too much power in Washington
  • 79% agree that the gap between rich and poor has grown too large in America
  • 71% think the Wall Street executives responsible for the financial meltdown should be prosecuted
  • 68% think the rich should pay more taxes

However, 56% believe the OWS protests will have little impact on any of this. Sadly, they’re probably right. As Dana Milbank says after surveying recent congressional priorities, “For all the talk of populist foment — the Tea Party on the right and the new Occupy Wall Street movement on the left — business interests remain firmly in control. Forced to choose between their voters and their donors, lawmakers don’t hesitate before choosing the latter.”

No they don’t, do they? After all, the tea partiers and the OWSers might have all the energy and get all the media attention, but business interests still have all the mother’s milk of politics.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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