Why the GOP can ignore the brutal government shutdown polls — for now

There's still plenty of time for Republicans to save themselves from irrelevance

"Yet" could have a lot to do with Sen. Ted Cruz.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Donna Carson))

October has not been a good month for Republicans. The party gained nothing from instigating the government shutdown and debt ceiling fights other than a historically low approval rating and a roiling intra-party blame game.

Given the GOP's deep unpopularity and state of disarray, polls have indicated the party is in line for an electoral shellacking in 2014. In the latest such indicator, a Washington Post/ABC News poll this week found that voters by a large 11-point margin said they would rather vote for a Democrat than a Republican next year.

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Jon Terbush

Jon Terbush is an associate editor at TheWeek.com covering politics, sports, and other things he finds interesting. He has previously written for Talking Points Memo, Raw Story, and Business Insider.