POLLING SECESSION…. The latest Research 2000 poll for Daily Kos asks respondents, “Do you think the state that you live in would be better off as an independent nation or as part of the United States of America?” About four out of five Americans prefer to keep the union together. But there were some political and regional differences.
Self-identified Democrats, for example, feel pretty strongly about staying in the U.S., with 91% rejecting the idea of their state becoming an independent country. Among Independents, it was 80%. Among Republicans, the number drops to 62%, with 12% preferring to leave the U.S., and 26% of Republicans unsure.
It’s funny what three months of a Democratic president will do to one’s sense of patriotism.
But I was even more intrigued by the regional differences. I even made a chart, using the poll results.
In the Northeast, there’s near unanimity about staying in the United States. The numbers are nearly as strong in the West and Midwest. But in the South, only 61% expressed support for keeping the union together, 9% believe their state would be better off as an independent nation (the other regions were below 5%), and 30% aren’t sure.
The same poll also asked, “Would you approve or disapprove of the state that you live in leaving the United States?” The trend was similar. In the Northeast, there was strong support for staying in the country (94% to 1%), as was the case in the West (87% to 3%) and Midwest (89% to 4%). In the South, the numbers were comparably much closer (63% to 8%).
The poll comes just as the Oklahoma legislature is set to vote on a resolution affirming its sovereignty. Gov. Brad Henry (D) vetoed the measure, but lawmakers are poised to override.
