Several weeks ago, Rep. Kristi Noem urged constituents to take her "poll" on guns. All I've seen come of that poll are e-mails in which Noem claims that I share her views on the Second Amendment. That sentence alone should indict the validity of her gun poll.
Now Noem touts another faux poll. "Share your thoughts," she shouts, on immigration. Of course, she provides no real space in which to share full thoughts, just three Yes/No questions:
- Have you been following the recent immigration debate?
- Do you support the current immigration reform proposal as passed by the Senate?
- Do you believe the first priority regarding immigration should be securing our border?
Noem allows "Unsure" as a response to #3, but those aren't thoughts; those are burps. Take #2: I can say "No," but if Noem ever released results from the poll, she'd spin that No as support for her House obstructionism. She'd have no idea (and no desire to explain) that my No means I'd rather see the original Senate bill stripped of the security-industrial complex pork that the Senate added to win GOP votes.
The poll includes no text box for offering your developed thoughts. It's Yes, No, and Shut Up Already.
Noem is fishing for e-mail addresses, not thoughts. Click all you want—you won't learn about public opinion or reshape Kristi's smugly set-in-stone views. You'll get fundraising e-mails. Grrr.