There's a reason some people can't make up their minds

Yglesias:

Joe Klein visited a focus group:

"Change" as a theme is over. Too vague. And Obama's rhetoric has begun to seriously cut against him. "No more oratory," one woman said. "Give us details."

I always wonder about this stuff. I mean, it's inconceivable to me that this woman is genuinely yearning to learn more about the details of Obama's policy agenda. If she actually wanted to know, she could, you know, look into it. She could learn all about the differences between auctioning emissions permits and giving them away, about the implications of having the federal government provide reinsurance for catastrophic medical expenses, about the case for a permanent R&D tax credit, etc., etc. But all indications are that most people find politics boring, and policy details duller still. And swing voters, which is what this was a focus group of, are least interested of all.

I cite this partly because I strongly agree with the sentiment, and also because it gives me a reason to link to this article by Christopher Hayes in which he writes about his experience talking to undecided voters in Wisconsin in 2004. It's one of the best pieces of political writing I've ever read, and if you haven't seen it before, I highly recommend it. You'll never think about "swing voters" the same way again.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on August 29, 2008 to The making of the President