Study: Terror Alerts Would Hurt McCain-Palin

clipped from www.nbc11.com Contrary to conventional wisdom, if a terror alert hits the U.S., it may not have a positive effect on the McCain/Palin campaign's efforts, especially with swing voters, a new study has found. Contrary to earlier studies that found that the threat of terrorism favors conservative leaders, a new national field study conducted by UC Berkeley sociologists Robb Willer and Nick Adams showed that terror warnings delivered by government agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security may reduce support for Sen. John McCain among moderates or swing voters. The researchers said study results have led them to believe that presidential candidates who play up the threat of terrorism to bolster votes may want to rethink that game plan. The study indicates the war on terror has less impact on presidential popularity than it did during President Bush's first term, the researchers said.

You can only exploit people's fears for so long before they wise up and realize you're not actually doing anything about the thing you're afraid of. Just as the "values voters" have come to realize that Republicans aren't really addressing their issues, so "security voters" are too.