I found interesting the recent poll regarding the Columbia River Crossing commissioned by The Columbian. Even not having read the full report of the poll, there are certain things that I can take from the results, such as the fact that County Commissioner David Madore and his anti-CRC following have falsely framed the debate over light rail as an overwhelming majority of Clark County residents adamantly opposing both the CRC as a whole and light rail.
The poll shows that 49 percent of respondents support light rail’s inclusion in the overall CRC project, with 43 percent of respondents opposed, with a 5 percent margin of error. That’s in addition to a virtual tie on public opinion over the CRC project.
The moral of the story: Elected officials should never assume that their constituents feel the same way that they do, which is a very common political mistake.
Of course, there are those out there that, no matter what statistics or polls are thrown their way, will never abandon their position. They will say the questions were skewed, or 400 people is not enough, or that The Columbian is biased. But these are all simply ways to justify their own cognitive dissonance.
