Jobs and the Economy

Whit Ayres, February 1

February 6, 2018 by North Star

Whit Ayres’ comments in The Washington Post on Nancy Pelosi’s dismissal of tax reform benefits:

Even many Democrats cringed privately at her “crumbs” comment, which they worry distracts from their larger argument over the fairness of GOP economic policies. And of course, any metaphor that involves baked goods easily lends itself to the Marie Antoinette caricature that Republicans have drawn of Pelosi.

“It sounds like something a wealthy woman from San Francisco would say,” said Republican pollster Whit Ayres.

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Filed Under: Blog, Featured, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, Middle Class Voters, News Clips, Tax Reform

Jon McHenry, January 26

January 26, 2018 by North Star

Jon McHenry’s comments to The World Weekly on the economy and Republican prospects in the fall:

Republican leaders plan to campaign on economic successes. The US economy has surged in recent months, with GDP up 3.2% in the third quarter of 2017 and unemployment down to 4.1%. Messaging will particularly focus on the Republican tax plan, stressing the tax cuts for the middle class set to start next month – one Republican dubbed it the “Great American Comeback.” “While many Republican accomplishments appeal to the conservative base, more money in people’s pockets appeals to everyone,” says Jon McHenry, Republican pollster, to TWW.

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: Blog, Featured, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Republicans

Jon McHenry, August 16

August 16, 2017 by North Star

Jon McHenry’s comments in The Hill regarding tax reform messaging:

GOP lawmakers and the Trump administration often spend a considerable amount of time discussing how tax reform will boost economic growth and business competitiveness.

Strategists suggested that it’s important for Republicans to explain how more economic growth directly affects them, and some argued that lawmakers should cut to the chase and lead their tax-reform pitches with arguments about more jobs and more take-home income.

“The most important thing is to keep it on the day-to-day things that people are focused on, which in this case is jobs,” said Jon McHenry, vice president of the GOP polling firm North Star Opinion Research.

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: Blog, Featured, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, Middle Class Voters, News Clips, Republicans

Whit Ayres, March 5

March 5, 2014 by North Star

Whit Ayres’ comments on Republican economic messages in Politico:

That doesn’t necessarily mean they need to nationalize the election with one agenda, like House Republicans’ “Contract With America” in 1994 or their “Pledge to America” in 2010. But Republican candidates should at least have their own economic alternatives, said GOP pollster Whit Ayres: “What would you do differently? What’s your plan?”

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Filed Under: Featured, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Political Climate

Whit Ayres, Time, January 7

January 8, 2014 by North Star

Whit Ayres’ comments for Time on the Republican approach to addressing poverty:

While both parties bemoan many of the same symptoms, they hardly agree on the disease, let alone the medicine. Democrats focus on income inequality: the gap between the nation’s highest and lowest earners is at its greatest level since the Roaring Twenties. Republicans, on the other hand, emphasize social mobility: the declining ease with which Americans can rise from the middle class to the top wage bracket. That makes the coming push less about policy as it is about election-year politics.

“While they may be using some of the same words, their perspectives are entirely different,” GOP pollster Whit Ayers said of the divide between Democrats and Republicans on the issue. “And that leads to fundamentally different conclusions.”

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: Featured, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Political Climate

Jon McHenry, May 20

May 20, 2013 by North Star

Jon McHenry’s comments in the Washington Post regarding Congress and the economy:

“When you’ve got Republicans saying government is doing too much and needs to get out of the way of business, and Democrats saying government needs to step in and do more to help people out, it becomes pretty hard to bridge that economic gap,” said Jon McHenry, vice president of North Star Opinion Research, a Republican firm that polls for clients including Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida.

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: Blog, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Political Climate

Whit Ayres, February 6

February 6, 2013 by North Star

Whit Ayres’ comments in The Washington Post regarding Republican messaging on fiscal issues:

“It’s challenging to talk about budgets in a way that resonates with average folks,” said Republican pollster Whit Ayres.

Although most Americans believe that deficits and debt represent a threat to the country’s future, Ayres added, “the challenge is figuring out how to say that in a way that is palatable. Fundamentally, prosperity beats austerity as a message.”

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: Featured, In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Political Climate

Whit Ayres, November 2

November 2, 2012 by North Star

Whit Ayres’ comments on the unemployment report in USA Today:

But the Labor Department report that once was seen as a potential “October surprise” — that is, the sort of late-breaking news that could dramatically shift votes — is instead one more sign that a slow but relatively steady economic recovery is continuing.

“It’s not too late to matter, particular if it’s a marked departure in one direction or the other than what we’ve seen before,” Republican pollster Whit Ayres said before the report was released. “If we think back to 1980, we thought the election was set, and then we had the one-year anniversary of the Iranian hostage crisis, which reminded everyone of their frustration” with that crisis. “If we have a bad jobs report, it will remind everyone of their enormous frustration with Obama’s inability to get this economy going.”

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Political Climate

Jon McHenry, October 21

October 21, 2012 by North Star

Jon McHenry’s comments on the third presidential debate focused on foreign policy:

“The economy is the first, second and third most important issue for virtually everybody,” says Republican pollster Jon McHenry. “But foreign policy is something voters care about at the presidential level.”

For the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, National Security, News Clips

Whit Ayres, June 5

June 5, 2012 by North Star

Whit Ayres’ comments on China and the economy, on the Bloomberg website:

“There is obviously a widespread concern that China is an increasingly important and too often unfair competitor,” said Whit Ayers, a Republican pollster who conducted a survey on China last year for the Alliance of American Manufacturing. “China is now an integral part of any debate on the economy.”

To read the full article, please click here.

Filed Under: In the News Sidebar, Jobs and the Economy, News Clips, Political Climate