I've always respected Matt Yglesias' tactical insight. His Social Security post from last March is probably the best single-issue tactical post I’ve ever seen. (Read it if you haven't – the analysis of intra-GOP tensions is particularly excellent, and time has proven him right.) This is why I was stunned at the lack of sense he was making on the Alito nomination, all week long.
We start with a bit of polling literalism:
In an effort to further provoke the ire of the blogosphere, here's a poll showing that 53 percent of voters think Alito should be confirmed and 27 percent think he shouldn't be.
But then you get other polls where the vote comes out 17-7, with a whopping 70% unable to say. (77% had neither a favorable nor unfavorable impression.) This is very soft support. Remember, Alito hasn't been in the public eye for very long, and he's lacking in any exciting qualities that win firm support from average voters. Fight the media battle well, and those numbers move at Vince Young speeds.
