Sportsmen poll shows cooling on Bush
by Ashley Powers, LA Times, July 20, 2004
Voters who hunt and fish, traditionally Republican-leaning, expressed
some displeasure with the Bush administration’s environmental
policies in a National Wildlife Federation poll released last week.
Of the 752 voters with hunting and angling licenses surveyed, 58%
disagreed with the administration’s proposed changes to the Clean
Water Act that could have affected wetlands, and 69% disagreed with
policies for reducing mercury emissions from coal-fired plants.
More than two-thirds of the respondents voted for George W. Bush in the last election. The poll’s margin of error is 3.6%.
“I wouldn’t say they’re popping champagne at Kerry-Edwards’
headquarters,” says the University of Virginia’s Paul Freedman, who
studies voter behavior and polling. But, he says, it suggests
Democrats could make inroads with conservative voters.
The poll did not query respondents about Sen. John F. Kerry, the
presumptive Democratic nominee. He and running mate Sen. John Edwards
have been courting the “sportsman” community; pictures on Kerry’s
website show him in hunting garb holding a gun.
The poll had an unusual sampling of people — two-thirds are licensed
to fish, one-third to hunt, Freedman says. Also, participants were
not asked which presumptive candidate they planned to vote for in
November.
Most of the hunters and anglers surveyed said they approved of the
president’s support for Florida Everglades restoration and programs
that help protect privately owned forests and restore fish and
wildlife habitat on private land.
“Anglers voted for Bush, and I think they would again,” says Bob
Osborn of United Anglers of Southern California. “Until someone says
their water has mercury, they’re not going to fight too strongly, and
they’re not changing their vote over it.”
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Since Vitter don’t hunt or fish, and I’m supposed to be heading up his Sportsmen group—I’m gonna call bullshit on this.
The Guv