Gallup says more Americans identifying themselves as conservative in 2009.

A recent Gallup poll shows more Americans identifying themselves as conservative. 40 percent say they're conservative, 36 percent moderate, and 20 percent liberal. The last couple of years, conservatives and moderates were tied at 37 percent.

I thought it was interesting the make up of the different parties. Republicans are predominantly conservative. While among Democrats moderates hold a slight plurality with 39 percent to 37 percent for liberals and 21 percent for conservatives. Of course, what one means by a liberal, moderate and conservative is important. Looking at the political leadership of the Democrat party, liberals are definitely in control.

The poll also looked at adults' views on different issues. There was movement across the board in favor of less government, less supportive of unions, more supportive of second amendment rights, more pro-life, supportive of promoting "traditional values", and less supportive of global warming.

Americans Also Moving Right on Some Issues

In addition to the increase in conservatism on this general ideology measure, Gallup finds higher percentages of Americans expressing conservative views on several specific issues in 2009 than in 2008.

• Perceptions that there is too much government regulation of business and industry jumped from 38% in September 2008 to 45% in September 2009.
• The percentage of Americans saying they would like to see labor unions have less influence in the country rose from 32% in August 2008 to a record-high 42% in August 2009.
• Public support for keeping the laws governing the sale of firearms the same or making them less strict rose from 49% in October 2008 to 55% in October 2009, also a record high. (The percentage saying the laws should become more strict -- the traditionally liberal position -- fell from 49% to 44%.)
• The percentage of Americans favoring a decrease in immigration rose from 39% in June/July 2008 to 50% in July 2009.
• The propensity to want the government to "promote traditional values" -- as opposed to "not favor any particular set of values" -- rose from 48% in 2008 to 53% in 2009. Current support for promoting traditional values is the highest seen in five years.
• The percentage of Americans who consider themselves "pro-life" on abortion rose from 44% in May 2008 to 51% in May 2009, and remained at a slightly elevated 47% in July 2009.
• Americans' belief that the global warming problem is "exaggerated" in the news rose from 35% in March 2008 to 41% in March 2009.

Of course, the big question is how these attitudes will affect political decisions. I wouldn't be surprised if liberals in Congress try to jam through more liberal policies while they have majorities in Congress even if that means some of their more moderate to conservative Democrats lose in 2010.

Minnesota more conservative than liberal while also more democrat than republican.

The Gallup organization released a poll on the make-up of the states on the conservative-liberal and republican-democrat fronts.

On the ideology front, conservatives outnumber liberals in every state in the country. Even in liberal states like Hawaii, Massachusetts, and Vermont conservatives had one point margins.

In Minnesota, 36% of Minnesotans describe themselves as conservatives while 23% say they are liberals. 38% say they are moderate. The net conservative factor is +13. The net republican factor in Minnesota is a negative -17. That means democrats outnumber republicans by 17 percentage points.

Nationally, Minnesota is described as "somewhat conservative."

I suspect the conservative-liberal gap will continue to grow as Obama pushes his "liberal" agenda on a more "conservative" nation.

Clinton v. Giuliani?

Hillary Clinton and Rudy Giuliani are both currently ahead in their races for the presidential nominations of their respective parties. A lot can and no doubt will happen between now and their nominating conventions. There are some who say there's no way Giuliani can win the Republican nomination because he's too liberal on social and other issues. That may well be the case but if the other four major candidates -- McCain, Huckabee, Romney and Thompson -- all stay in the race despite poor performances I think there's a scenario where they carve up the social and economic conservative voters and Giuliani wins the endorsement with 35 to 40% of the vote.

Clinton still has a good lead on the Democrat side and is still the odds on favorite to win the Democrat nomination.

If this is the line up for 2008 I think there will be very disenchanted people in both parties. Giuliani, for obvious reasons, among social conservatives and other conservatives. And Hillary because she does not excite many Democrats. I spoke with one DFL elected official who rolled his eyes when I asked him if he supported Hillary. He thought she would be a disaster. For one, she has extremely high negatives among voters in general. And second, there's the sense she'll say or do anything to get elected. A recent example is her trying to play both sides of the issue on giving driver licenses to illegal aliens. And columnist David Broder raises another issue; the idea that Bill Clinton would maintain a very influential position if she did become president and the concerns people have with that. I think there was Clinton fatigue after eight years of his presidency which was marked by personal scandal and a sense of opportunism and lack of principle.

The 2008 presidential election winner maybe a case of who people dislike the least.