Would you like to take a survey?

A few days ago an interesting document showed up in my mailbox. It was the Official 2012 Republican Presidential Platform survey package.

The package opens with a four page letter from RNC Chairman Reince Priebus who made the following comments while a candidate for the position he now holds:

In the December 1, 2010 RNC candidate forum, Priebus provided a few details about his politics. He stated he believes the RNC is “part of” the Tea Party movement; he believes it is the Republican Party’s mission to “save our country, to save our party and to take back the White House”; believes someone who is “pro-abortion, pro-stimulus, pro-AIG … might not be a Republican” and believes that being pro-life is “paramount” to the Republican Party platform.

The first page of the letter reads in part:

Dear Fellow American, What issues do you want our Republican presidential campaign to focus on in 2012 as we fight to make Barack Obama a ONE-TERM President? After compiling and modeling demographic information of thousands of activists in our database, you were selected to represent voters in your area in the OFFICIAL 2012 Presidential Platform Survey. The feedback you provide on this survey will directly impact the 2012 Republican campaign to elect a President so we can STOP the creeping socialism, massive accumulation of federal debt and economic stagnation that Obama’s policies have wrought on our nation.

If you are interested in the whole thing, here are scans of all the pages:

Page one

Page two

Page three

Page four

Note how at the end of the letter, you are asked to return your completed survey along WITH a donation to the RNC. There is no option to simply return the survey, you HAVE to send money back with it…at least, if you intend to use the form properly.

From there we jump, into the survey itself which is less a survey and more a regurgitation of right wing talking points. For example one of the early questions references Obama’s “radical policies”

Further down, a rather not too subtle question referring to “organizations whose primary function is conducting abortions”. Considering how open the rest of this letter/survey is about its aims its surprising they chose to word it this way instead of just outright asking: “Would you support an effort to defund Planned Parenthood?”

Also notice again, another question about Obama’s left wing radicalism.

Moving along, the last page of the survey poses an interesting group of questions under the title of “values questions”:

Again, it’s not the questions that are surprising as much as it is the wording. Instead of “do you support President Obama’s decision to not defend DOMA” it becomes an “unprecedented decision to ignore federal law”. Notice how they also add “and order HIS justice department”. Not THE Justice Department but HIS Justice Department.

As in, Obama is a madman determined to seize total control of every aspect of the U.S. government if he hasn’t done it already.

Of course on this page we also see the obligatory health care question. You’d have almost expected them to stick the phrase “death panels” in there somewhere but no such luck.

Despite the introduction letter stating the recipients of the survey are “carefully selected” the reality points to a relatively random selection. If you Google “Presidential platform survey” one of the first hits is from a guy who received this survey…who also happens to be a registered Democrat.

Interestingly, most of the other top results are from survey recipients who are ardent supporters of yes, you guessed it: Ron Paul.

This survey came in the mail only a few days after Santorum “suspended” his campaign. Obviously it was put together before he dropped out and although Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul are still technically in the race, Mitt Romney is the nominee, no doubt about it.

It’s unclear how many voters actually received this survey, but it does provide an eye opening glimpse into the tactics of the RNC.

In principal I think surveys like this are a great idea, but I think they should be more neutral in nature and the questions not slanted in any particular direction.

I studied statistics in college and one of the most important things about a written survey is how you word your questions. If you are truly aiming to be neutral and non-biased, you have to carefully craft your wording to ensure you don’t lead recipients towards a particular answer.

In the case of this RNC survey, it appears the authors were intent on guiding recipients to certain responses to reinforce particular beliefs and viewpoints, regardless of the facts (or lack thereof) supporting them.