Publication Name
BusinessWeek
Author(s)
John Carey
Republican pollster William D. McInturff has tracked plenty of issues over the years. But even he has been surprised at how quickly a new concern has recently gone "from not on the radar screen to being an American consensus." The worry? It's foreign oil dependence. Adds Democratic pollster Mark S. Mellman: "There's a strong feeling that we are sending billions to people who don't like us in exchange for oil, damaging national security."
This growing concern cuts across party and regional lines—and Americans are livid about Washington's failure to do anything about it. "People thought they voted for change in 2006, but they haven't seen it," says McInturff. Throw in increasing worry about global warming, and it's clear that a significant political shift has occurred.
...
That should be a wake-up call to others, argues Philip Clapp, deputy managing director of the Pew Environment Group. "The auto companies tried to just say 'no,' but they completely miscalculated the political shift," he says. Industries and lawmakers who oppose broader global warming legislation, he warns, risk the same sort of defeat.
Read the full article A Primed Political Pump on the BusinessWeek website.
