The Partisan Divide Is Not Symmetrical

For those interested in countering conservative talking points, these results from a Pew Research Center poll give the lie to one of the claims being made over the airwaves by Republican apologists--namely, that Democrats are eager to cover up or excuse the mistakes made by local and state officials in the response to Katrina.

As the poll shows, Democrats, Republicans, and independents are pretty much united in recognizing that the local and state response was badly flawed. The one number that's off the charts is the Republican opinion about the federal government's response, which is far more favorable than that held by either Democrats or independents.

So, yes, there is a group of people in this country who seem to be so blinded by partisanship that they can't bring themselves to acknowledge failures by their chosen leaders. That group is not the Democrats.