Polarization

Several sites, including Power Line and the Daily Caller, are commenting on a new survey out from the American Culture and Faith Institute. It looks at the opinions of liberals and conservatives and finds them profoundly divided on what constitutes patriotism and whether one loves our country. Daily Caller's title is particularly apropos:

Poll shows Nation Divided Between America First and Blame America First

As the Obama years made clear to any conservative paying attention, liberals aren’t nearly so fond of America nor nearly so likely to support it or think it the best place to live. No wonder the slogan “Make America Great Again” didn’t resonate with them, they didn’t think it was great before and don’t now. A telling example:

For conservatives, according to the poll, the most patriotic organizations and individuals include the National Rifle Association, Chick-Fil-A, the Republican Party, Fox News and Hobby Lobby. The least patriotic to conservatives are: CNN, The New York Times, NFL, Planned Parenthood, Target, Starbucks, Colin Kaepernick, Michael Moore, Rachel Maddow and Al Sharpton.

Liberals think the most patriotic institutions and people are the Democratic Party, Colin Kaepernick, the U.S. Supreme Court, Planned Parenthood, Michael Moore, The New York Times, and the NFL. The least patriotic to liberals are Chick-Fil-A, Fox News and Hobby Lobby.

No question, conservatives and liberals live in alternate universes, perceive alternate realities. Our icons are their objects of scorn or hatred, and vice versa. We have become each other’s enemy.

Given this, no one should be surprised that virtually everything done in Congress is entirely along party lines, with next-to-no crossover bipartisanship. “Crossing the aisle” is effectively treason.

As demographers have noted, we’re even moving apart geographically. I can’t think we’ve been this polarized since the mid-1850s.