Rasmussen 2012 Republican National Primary Poll
- Mike Huckabee 29% (22%)
- Mitt Romney 24% (25%)
- Sarah Palin 18% (24%)
- Newt Gingrich 14% (14%)
- Tim Pawlenty 4% (1%)
- Some other candidate 6% (6%)
- Not Sure 7%
Regardless of who you would vote for, which candidate would you least like to see win the Republican nomination in 2012?
- Tim Pawlenty 28% (15%)
- Sarah Palin 21% (21%)
- Newt Gingrich 20% (15%)
- Mitt Romney 9% (9%)
- Mike Huckabee 8% (10%)
In the 2012 election, how likely is it that a Republican candidate will defeat Barack Obama?
- Very likely 50% (41%)
- Somewhat likely 31% (34%)
- Not very likely 8% (14%)
- Not at all likely 4% (4%)
This national telephone survey of 750 Likely 2012 GOP Primary Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports on October 15, 2009. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Results from the poll conducted July 6 are in parentheses..
Inside the numbers:
Huckabee and Romney are viewed favorably by 78% of Republican voters, Palin by 75%. Gingrich earns favorably reviews from 69% while Pawlenty is less well known and gets a positive assessment from 45% of Republicans.
Romney leads all prospects among voters who attend church once a month or less. Huckabee leads among more frequent churchgoers. Huckabee holds a huge lead among Evangelical Christians with Palin in second and Romney a distant third. Huckabee and Romney are essentially even among other Protestants while Romney has the edge among Catholics.
Romney leads among Republicans earning more than $75,000 a year while Huckabee leads among those who earn less.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
Good news for Pawlenty and Huckabee. Gingrich isn’t running so his support will flow to someone else. I’m surprised that Romney and Palin aren’t doing better.
The bottom line: there is still no definite front-runner, and practically anyone has a chance to get the nomination if this keeps up.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
Hope and change, the Republican version. God help us all.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
Wait, I though Rasmussen was supposed to be a PRO-Romney poll?
October 16th, 2009 at 12:31 pm
#2- Seriously. These are our best and brightest? Pathetic.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
thought this from the survey was more telling-
2* Regardless of who you would vote for, which candidate would you least like to see win the Republican nomination in 2012….Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, Mike Huckabee, Newt Gingrich or Tim Pawlenty?
9% Romney
21% Palin
8% Huckabee
20% Gingrich
28% Pawlenty
good for Huckabee and Romney- bad for everyone else
October 16th, 2009 at 12:43 pm
I’ll say the exact same thing that I said when the last poll showed Romney ahead by five points — this means nothing for the 2012 primaries. We are still 27 months before the first caucus/primary vote is cast. We still have the 2010 bi-election to be held. Nobody has even announced yet, nor are they seriously campaigning. The first poltical ad has yet to be run. The first debate is still two years away.
In other words, take this and all other polls before the middle of 2011 with a HUGE grain of salt.
That being said, the trends seem to be Huck and Mitt playing leapfrog with the lead, and Sarah is slowly sinking. Pawlenty is rising out of the mud.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:47 pm
“Romney has the edge among Catholics”
Huckabee and Palin are never going to be the favorites of the majority of Catholics. They seem too… evangelical and Protestant for most of us. Pawlenty converted from the Catholic faith to the Protestant faith, so that isn’t going to help him. With candidates with that sort of religious background, Romney or some other candidate might win the Catholic vote by default.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
Well, I have to agree with you MarK, yes the good news for me is that Mrs. Palin’s sink is slow; the bad news is that she is thinking nevertheless. We might have an M & M contest after all.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:49 pm
puke puke puke… if huckabee gets the nom… wow. i would vote 3rd party fo shizzle.
October 16th, 2009 at 12:52 pm
“Romney has the edge among Catholics” Yes, I saw that too and I was a bit shocked that my co-religionist were going to Mr. Romney. He must be doing something right to improve his standing among Catholic.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:16 pm
10. I think Romney did well with Catholics in 08.
OJ, I wouldn’t worry about Palin. I don’t care what this polls says, she has a far better shot at the nomination than Huck. I still think it’s going to be a Romney/Palin race.
Huck cannot win. No Way, No How. He already proved it.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
I am not sure I could say Huckabee and Romney are leap frogging each other. Romney has been ahead in one maybe two polls and never by more than a couple of points. Huckabee has consistently led through out most of the polls. Granted none of the polls mean squat right now. Also, I am not sure how Pawlenty having the highest ranking in the least like to see helps him. Yes he is gaining ground but it is not all good ground. I think it is fair to say that Palin is in a nuclear implosion at the moment and her light is fading out. Her not being wanted to campaign for Republicans speaks volumes, much like her rambled resignation speech. Romney and Huckabee do seem to be the guys with the most to lose and the ones who will be leading the way for the foreseeable future. But unlike the Rombots and in the pocket pundits I don’t think Romney is the clear front runner but rather it is Huckabee. That being said, I don’t think Huckabee is so far ahead that he could not be caught. And again, these polls mean nothing.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
There isn’t that much conceptually different between the Catholic Church (at least as it started) and the LDS Church. Catholics have always been fertile ground for LDS Missionaries. So, no surprise that Romney leads among Catholics.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
“10. I think Romney did well with Catholics in 08.” He did OK, but Mr. McCain did the best by far, a regional breakdown would be interesting.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
“Romney has the edge among Catholics”
Well, Mormons and Catholics share many of the same core philosophies:
One, they are both hierarchical religions. Most Protestant religions have fairly loose organizations. The Protestants are constantly splitting, combining, morphing, evolving. There is little stability when compared with the Catholics and the Mormons.
Two, they both believe that a man can’t just start up a religion and expect God to recognize it. Protestants mainly believe that reading, interpreting, and preaching the bible correctly is enough to gain God’s recognition.
Three, they both are targets of some Protestants insisting they aren’t really Christians. Books attacking both can be found in most Protestant bookstore “Cult” sections.
Four, they both agree that God is the source of religious truth, not the whims of worldly fads. In the movie “The Trouble with Angels”, the principal of a progressive school told a Catholic school’s Mother Superior that “The finest educational minds in the country are on our side”. Reverend Mother merely replied, “God is on our’s”. Which brings up the next point –
Five, striving for excellence is a core part of their doctrine. They both put great emphasis on education and learning.
So if we are going to talk about religion and politics, then it doesn’t surprise me in the least that Catholics tend to prefer Romney over Huckabee or Palin. But I suspect it is more of a “Howabout that” than a “This proves it” factoid.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
Martha,
By your logic Romney and Palin can’t win either, they already proved it. You should really at least admit reality, you are calling the sky neon and the grass purple. No one knows who is going to be in the race, nor what the polls will be in two years, but what we do know is that as of right now Huckabee has the lead.
BTW, Palin is the least likely to be the nominee out of all the ones in the poll.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Retailers Pin Hopes on Sarah Palin’s Memoir
Pre-Orders Are Strong for Politician’s ‘Going Rogue,’ but Title Is Caught Up War
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703790404574473484219274894.html#printMode
October 16th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
Pence’s trips to Iowa, South Carolina, spur White House chatter
http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/63365-pences-trips-to-iowa-south-carolina-spur-white-house-chatter
October 16th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
#15:
If a candidate like, oh my favorite Mitch Daniels, runs, he could contest the Catholic vote as well. A Protestant candidate just can’t seem too evagelical if they want to woo Catholic voters. Take McCain for instance. He is Protestant, but he didn’t try and ram it down anyones throat. For the most part, Catholic voters don’t vote on religious grounds, so religious appeals tend to be ineffective for them.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Martha.#11,
Never say “never”. You know that.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
#19.Jonathan:“For the most part, Catholic voters don’t vote on religious grounds, so religious appeals tend to be ineffective for them.”
I fully agree. I also agree that the vast majority of Americans feel the same way. That is why I said this is probably more of a “Howabout that” factoid than a real “This proves it” one.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
I can see the Huckabots having a ball with this: “Romney is the preferred candidate of the godless atheists!”
Actually, I believe it’s more that he’s the candidate of the elite, many of whom are not regular churchgoers, but still I can see it being spun different ways.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:37 pm
Interesting MarK, I probably would have though of a few diferent similarities (pardon the pun, but would not necessarily thought of the 5 points that you are made. In some respects, I can easily see how many Catholics would vote for a Mormon. However, I do not think that Mr. Romney’s specific persona (Mormonism aside) is necessarily more appealing to Catholics at least in some parts of the country, but suppose that this poll kind of proves me wrong. I do know a number of Catholic Romneyites to be sure, but I know more Catholic GOPers that are not. I guess this might also prove that Catholics in different parts of the country have different political leanings.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
Tim Pawlenty is better than Mitt Romney. I am disappointed that Newt Gingrich is not going to run in 2012. He is a true conservative. I saw the poll that Palin is not doing too well. Probably Palin didn’t finished out her term as the Governor of Alaska. She just quit. Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee won’t get the nominee in 2012. They are done.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
“Actually, I believe it’s more that he’s the candidate of the elite, many of whom are not regular churchgoers, but still I can see it being spun different ways.” True, not everybody thinks Mormon when they think Mr. Romney despite the contests that have taken place on this site.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:42 pm
Here’s an interesting stat from the crosstabs:
Palin’s winning the 18-29 group of Republicans handily: 31% to 23% for Romney and 17% for Huckabee.
Palin’s winning the 30-39 group of Republicans easily as well: 28% to 21% for Huckabee and 19% for Romney.
But Palin’s only getting 10% in the 40-49, 19% in the 50-64 group, and 16% in the 65+ group and they constitute a greater proportion of the Republican electorate at this time.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
“Tim Pawlenty is better than Mitt Romney. I am disappointed that Newt Gingrich is not going to run in 2012. He is a true conservative. I saw the poll that Palin is not doing too well. Probably Palin didn’t finished out her term as the Governor of Alaska. She just quit. Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee won’t get the nominee in 2012. They are done.
” Shhhhhhhhhhh, you sound worse than a person in my household. BTW, Mr. Gingrich and Mr. Pawlenty are not 100% Conservative either.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Haha, we need more young people Tommy Boy!
October 16th, 2009 at 1:44 pm
#23:
Again, it may be that Romney wins the Catholic vote by default. 3 evangelical Protestants, including one who is a former Catholic, are not really tough competition for Romeney to compete with. Plus, they are all pro-life, so that issue is moot.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
Jonathan #15: McCain’s kids went to (and the youngest is still attending) Catholic schools (the head of his sons’ school did the invocation at the Convention).
I grew up as a Catholic (attended the same high school as McCain’s sons) and agree that a great many Catholics are uncomfortable with evangelicals. In large part it is, I think, an awareness that many evangelicals speak of Catholicism in “whore of Babylon” terms.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:49 pm
As a devout Catholic himself, Gingrich probably would stand the best chance of winning the Catholic vote. However, if Gingrich doesn’t run and he were able to secure the Council of Bishops endorsement for Governor Palin then she would likely benefit.
I would like to see this poll without Huckabee and see what the numbers looked like.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
That response to Jonathan should be to comment #19.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:51 pm
Yeah, it is true Jonathan that since none of the other candidates are Catholic either so Mr. Romney being a non Catholic should not hurt him. It is also true that since Mr. Romney is Pro-Life, he is not going to be hurt much among Catholic voters on that issue. However, I would imagine that Catholics might disagree with Mr. Romney on a few other issues, but I guess this poll suggests I am wrong.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:51 pm
I don’t think the bishops have ever endorsed anybody, nor will they do Newt Gingrich’s bidding.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:54 pm
JA Pruce, As much as some of us might like it, the Council of Bishops cannot endorse Mrs. Palin. It would be bad form for one thing and they are not in the business of endorsing people. It just does not happen.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Check out how Drudge is treating the Rasmussen poll.
It doesn’t seem to be a good sign for Huck that Drudge is taking that attitude.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Correct Bob. Mr. Gingrich is a good man, but we Catholics have no obligation to follow him off a cliff just because he happens to be a co-religionist.
October 16th, 2009 at 1:57 pm
#30:
Thanks for the info. I was unaware about McCain’s family, but I think he himself is Protestant. Still, having his kids attend Catholic school probably doesn’t hurt when he tries to get Catholic votes.
#31:
The Council of Bishops would never endorse a candidate for President, especially during the primaries. It is Church policy to stay out of politics (at least in America), and they don’t want to alienate large sections of the faithful. Getting into politics would be bad politics for the Church and the Bishops.
October 16th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
Alex Conant isn’t happy with the poll. I have no idea why he would even respond:
http://www.startribune.com/blogs/64508447.html
October 16th, 2009 at 2:00 pm
i dont want to be a part of a party that nominates Bush / McCain / Huckabee successivley. not thanks. peace.
October 16th, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Correction my comment #31 should have stated the Council of Bishop’s tacit support and encouragement not an official endorsement that would be improper. And Speaker Gingrich does have some pull with Catholics but by no means at all does he dictate policy to Rome. He was first out of the gate criticizing the morality of the Obama appearance at Notre Dame when few others spoke out – he has been more outspoken about values and morality issues then most of the other candidates this cycle and it is paying off for him politically among values voters and Catholics.
October 16th, 2009 at 2:08 pm
Firstly, the day Drudge starts determining the republican nominee, I will start worrying about how he treats anything.
Secondly, on religious votes, on Catholics: R 31, H 25; on Protestants, R 25, P 16, H 26; on those attending Church once a week, R 21%, P 17, H 32; on evangelicals, R 14, P 25, H 37 — so for those who practice religion — any religion — actively, Huckabee is taking the lead in general
Thirdly, I do not know who will win the republican nomination — but I am certain it will be either Huckabee or Romney. And I have put my money on Huckabee (actually bought shares when the price is cheap) and I plan on making a big haul.
October 16th, 2009 at 2:09 pm
#39:
The Pawlenty people are probably pretty happy to see him moving up in the polls, but they have to pretend it doesn’t matter yet. Pawlenty is running for President, and his would-be campaign should be glad that he is at slowly making his way into the public consciousness.
October 16th, 2009 at 2:11 pm
#38: Yes, the McCains are members of North Phoenix Baptist, but his sons attended Brophy Prep, a Jesuit boys school, and the girls attended Xavier Prep, a girls’ school nearby. A fair number of non-Catholics send their kids to those schools because they are excellent (and who in their right mind wants their kids at a public school?).
October 16th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Hey, if I could have afforded it, I would have sent my kids to a Catholic school in a heartbeat. How many parents don’t want the best possible education for their kids?
Then there are families like one I know of in Wyoming. They sent their child to a private religious school not of their faith for its superior education. The school required so many hours a week in Chapel time. So the parents had their kid sit through the entire time with his fingers in his ears.
*sigh*
October 16th, 2009 at 2:24 pm
#43.Jonathan:
I can relate. Four years ago, Mitt Romney was also slowly rising in the polls. At this time, he too was under 5%. The fact that Mitt came within a hairbreadth of taking the nomination has to encourage MWS and Pawlenty’s other supporters.
October 16th, 2009 at 3:00 pm
I’d guess here that Palin’s loss is Huckabee’s gain. If I were Romney/Pawlenty, I’d be egging Palin on to stay in the race myself.
But looking at the numbers, I wonder about Pawlenty’s ability to build strength from here. And if Huckabee continues to gather steam, unless Romney goes for a repeat of the botched ’08 campaign I see just about everyone else coalescing around Romney.
October 16th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
For the first time in quite some time, Huckabee has seen some movement in Intrade and Pawlenty seems to be the one most impacted by Huckabee’s rise.
Intrade sees a Huckabee/Pawlenty parrallel.
October 16th, 2009 at 3:07 pm
If FOX stopped pushing Huckabee and Palin, I wonder what the polls would show. Romney just get mediocre coverage if he gets any at all.
October 16th, 2009 at 3:08 pm
Regarding Rasmussen, let’s hope for Scott’s sake that he gets New Jersey right. The left will have a field day if he’s showing Christie +4 (a result that no other non-online poll shows at this point) and Corzine wins (as is expected overwhelmingly on Intrade).
October 16th, 2009 at 3:15 pm
20. You’re right Mark. I suppose it really is theoretically possible that Huck could win the nomination. Something could happen to all of the other candidates. Car accidents, heart attacks, tornados, illicit affairs, you name it.
(After all, Huck is God’s choice, remember?)
October 16th, 2009 at 3:50 pm
It largely depends on Rubio vs. Crist.
If Rubio wins in 2010, Huck has a good chance of winning Florida’s primary. Rubio would surely endorse Huck. Crist would likely endorse Romney.
Iowa, SC, and Florida should be enough to catapult a candidate to the nomination.
October 16th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
It really is way too early to say, but a Romney/Pawlenty ticket seems more than probable.
October 16th, 2009 at 4:07 pm
In Huck’s defense, that’s a pretty good pic we have in the Race4 pics. He’s looking the part of a strong leader.
October 16th, 2009 at 4:15 pm
This is excellent news. Huckabee has had the right tone and is stressing the important issues. He is trusted by his viewers and shows them that he can be civil with those he opposes on policies.
October 16th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
How can something be “more than probable” when it’s “way too early to say”?
Probable means more than 50% likelihood. “More than probable” means, let us say, 60%-70%. You are willing to state, about three years before the convention, not only who the nominee will be, but who he will chose for VP — with 60%+ confidence?
October 16th, 2009 at 5:00 pm
That’s the “I know Chuck Norris” look.
October 16th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
Good poll for Michael.
The only thing this proves is that Huck is Mitt’s biggest danger – not the Palinator. Then again most of us worked that out a year ago.
October 16th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
58. I don’t think so, though. I think Palin is Romney’s biggest competitor – low approval ratings and all. Palin is far more palatable to most republicans than Huck. I don’t care what the silly poll says.
October 16th, 2009 at 5:53 pm
I don’t think so Martha. I don’t think anyone will seriously challenge Mitt Romney, but for now, Huckabee has the best chance of doing so.
I don’t know how anyone can think that this is good news for Pawlenty. He’s been at 4% in some other polls. When a person gets that few of votes, it’s easy for it to vary a few percent, and triple or quadruple their previous figures. Have you ever rolled snake eyes twice in a roll? Of course you have, if you’ve thrown very many throws of two dice. It’s the same thing with polling; you sometimes find several votes for a person that is a 2% candidate. Secondly, for Pawlenty to have the highest vote for the candidate people would least like to see as our nominee does not stand well for him. Isn’t this the guy that so many people have promoted as the alternative candidate that might slip through?
I would say at this point Romney has the best shot at it. It’s interesting that Romney is shown as higher than Palin as far as favorability rankings amongst Republicans.
October 16th, 2009 at 5:55 pm
Nothing could keep Huck from running, particularly with his numbers as high as they are. His ego wouldn’t allow him to pass on the race. But I’m not at all sure Palin will run. This poll shows movement that would further discourage her from running, and she doesn’t have the platform Huck does. If her book doesn’t move her numbers, what will??
It’s shaping up so far as a Mitt/Huck race, with Pawlenty as the wild card.
October 16th, 2009 at 5:58 pm
Huckabee’s popularity continues to shatter new records.
There is now a Huckabee Fan in 13% (408 counties) of all the counties in America. That is a gigantic number of grassroots involvement at such an early stage in the 2012 Presidential Elections. If an average county measures 5 miles by 5 miles, that’s an amazing 1,020 miles of Huckabee Fans East to West x 1,020 miles of Huckabee Fans from North to South. The extensive network of Huckabee Fans is spread evenly across all 50 States too. Huckabee Fans just keep on multiplying left and right, non-stop 24/7.
Check it out for yourself, just google: Huckabee Fan Club
October 16th, 2009 at 6:25 pm
62. Whoo hoo!
Sorry, couldn’t help myself!
October 16th, 2009 at 7:23 pm
Huckapedia… I think your unbridled enthusiasm is to be envied. It is good to see someone cheer for their candidate, rather than tear down the other candidates.
That said, your comments border sometimes border between silly and fawning. I’m sure Huckabee is a good man, but he’s not going to invent the cure for cancer anytime soon. Nor is he about to establish world peace in the next six months… He’s only human.
October 16th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
62. Good for the ‘fan club’. Me? I want a leader for president, not a celeb.
October 16th, 2009 at 7:43 pm
The race starts in earnest exactly 12 months from now and to have any hope T/Paw needs to be at 10% by then, not 2-4%. There is simply no way he can make up the numbers in 12 months. Yes Huck had those numbers this time last cycle but he didn’t get the nomination and didn’t ever look like getting it. Roms had slightly better numbers but had the benefit of being popular in Iowa/NH and had millions to invest (and he didn’t win either).
October 16th, 2009 at 7:45 pm
Bob Hovic
#56
I’ll take the red mark for using the wrong word..thanks for correcting me, I should have based my comment on conjecture and used the word guess instead… as in making a judgment, but then again how can we assume something without having sufficient information, knowledge or facts… but hey, not every site is as fortunate as race42008 to have someone who is willing to take the time to correct comments for improper word usage.
October 16th, 2009 at 7:52 pm
No one’s asking why Pawlenty has such high unfavorable numbers? That’s not a question I’ve seen asked here. Someone, enlighten me. I know he’s by no means the favorite to win the nomination, but what is it that makes him the most disliked of this group.
October 16th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Number 62 is baffling. Your math is strange. And I don’t see how you find it impressive tat there is a Huckabee fan in 13% of the counties in America.
October 16th, 2009 at 8:33 pm
“Nor is he about to establish world peace in the next six months…” Haha, why not, if Mr. Obama can do it.
October 16th, 2009 at 8:36 pm
What is amazing is that Huckabee is not in the top 3 in Intrade.
October 16th, 2009 at 8:39 pm
#59
I never thought I would end up agreeing with you but this is what I have been saying for several months: it will come down to Romney vs Palin.
October 16th, 2009 at 9:23 pm
#68 People tend to pick the name they don’t know when asked that sort of negative question.
The same thing happened in 2007.
October 16th, 2009 at 9:48 pm
Sorry, i didn’t have time to read everyones comments. To me, this is encouraging for both Romney and Huckabee…who are obviously the two most powerful people in the fractured party right now. Huckabee is OBVIOUSLY benefitting from Palin’s star falling…which in the end is going to hurt Pawlenty as well, because the more people that jump on Huck’s bandwagon now…the harder it becomes for him to make the case that he is an “alternative” candidate. Romney is benefitting from the fading memories of the election. Also, there isn’t any attack ads going on right now either way. That is better for Mitt, because he is either the person doing the attacking or being attacked…both bad positions to be in. He is really never on the sidelines during an attack. So i think Romney will find out that as people forget 08, he is going to gain ground in the “likeability” section…which he already is from people like me. I’d love a Mitt Romney/Mike Huckabee hybrid ticket right now. If we could convince Huck that he isn’t going to be able to win the nomination, and that he would make a GREAT vice president…maybe he could swing his support toward Romney to SOLIDIFY the party. It would of course come with the condition that romney PROMISE to appoint strict constructionist judges that would overturn roe, and that he would oppose all pro-choice legislation. That’s the only way he could ever get Huck’s support. I think Romney makes a better candidate for president than huck, even though i don’t trust him. I want so badly to believe he is the conservative we all hope for, but then i come back to the wishy washy sands of abortion. It gets to me every time. Right now, it is a win/win for the party mostly because palin is fading and that is GOOD. We need a romney with the homeyness of huckabee. We need mitt to come out of his shell. He is always so guarded. Quit being guarded, be honest, take the blame when you have been wrong, offer sollutions. I believe that Mitt can win, i think huck can win too, but he has to sweep the conservatives and win over independants that believe in the populist message.
October 16th, 2009 at 9:50 pm
Question: Is it starting to look like Pawlenty is becoming the “despised” of the romney people? I know in 08 it was huckabee, but really I think a lot of romney people feel that pawlenty is a greater threat. Is that why they are pushing the negatives up on pawlenty?
October 16th, 2009 at 10:16 pm
Well here’s another poll that shows that neither Romney nor Huck are apt to blow up the party. Perhaps someday we can put the stupid notion to rest that millions upon billions of Republicans will “never” vote for one or the other.
And yes, I’m speaking to you, hyper-über-Rombots……
October 16th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
watered,
Half the Rombots on this site are sane. The other half hates the 6.7 billion people in this world not named “Mitt Romney.”
As for Pawlenty’s high number of “least want to see get the nomination,” it is nothing more than a reflection of people’s unfamiliarity with him, as Doug noted above. And by that I don’t mean, “once they get to know him, I just KNOW they’ll love him!” I mean that when asked a question like that, people will tend to pick the name of someone they don’t know, figuring they would least like to see someone they know nothing about be the nominee.
Imagine if I asked you the following question, because this is what it would be like for your average Republican:
Who would you LEAST like to see be the nominee in 2012, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, or Tony Farrington? Since most Republicans know and at least somewhat like the other 4, they’re going to pick the guy they never heard of, because for all they know, he could be some kind of communist pedophile or something….
October 16th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Romney spends cash to raise cash
Mitt Romney’s political group last month stepped up its fundraising operation, spending more than $40,000 building its donor rolls by renting and buying lists, sending out direct mail and hiring a phone bank.
http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=5F8B0017-18FE-70B2-A839BAE1BA73F588
October 16th, 2009 at 10:49 pm
MWS,
Out of your list of five prospective nominees, the person I would least like to see get the nod is Newt, since I’m positive he can’t win. I don’t know anything about this Farrington guy, so naturally am inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt.
Could it be that most Republicans have mostly positive opinions about Romney, Huckabee, Palin, and Gingrich, but don’t have positive feelings about Pawlenty?
October 16th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
#78
I got something from Free & Strong America today asking for donations. I threw it out. After having a baby last year (my wife did the actual “having”), we’ve been paying off medical bills – they’re finally paid off. So I’ll probably donate sometime in the next couple of months. I’m wondering if I can get them to keep me off their mailing list, in exchange for monthly or bimonthly donations… I just hate to see the junk come in the mail.
October 17th, 2009 at 8:04 am
#75…….Most “Rombots” would happily vote for Pawlenty in the general. Of course, he would get more love if he exclusively attacked the postions of Huckabee and Palin in the primaries
October 17th, 2009 at 8:06 am
#80…What, and miss the opportunity to get those Mitt goods or watch the Red Soxes with him?
I get my F&SA info via e-mail…..saves trees
October 17th, 2009 at 8:36 am
MWS,
You said, “Half the Rombots on this site are sane. The other half hates the 6.7 billion people in this world not named “Mitt Romney.”
Just plain rude, and simply untrue. I only have 2 people I complain about because they are very problematic candidates, and I think a lot of people feel that way, not just “Rombots”.
I’ve said a few critical things about Palwenty, but also some positive because when it comes down to it, Pawlenty doesn’t have that many negatives. He is a ho-hum, and he’s not as conservative as I would like, but I would have NO PROBLEM voting for him if he is ever the nominee. I’ve said he would be a fine VP.
I think you are growing a lot more bitter against Romney, which is fine, who cares. But you’re taking a lot more cheap shots at his supporters, and your spinning is out of control.
October 17th, 2009 at 9:32 am
MWS has never been fair to Romney or his fans; don’t exptect him to start now.
October 17th, 2009 at 10:41 am
[...] couple of thoughts on that Rasmussen poll that was released the other day showing Huckabee edging Romney for the Republican presidential [...]
October 17th, 2009 at 10:44 am
Vote on the two newest polls at MRC at http://mittromneycentral.com/2009/10/06/poll-huckabee-gingrich-palin-or-pawlenty/#comments and http://mittromneycentral.com/2009/10/16/friday-fun-word-of-the-year-poll-obama-edition/
October 17th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
That first poll is actually closed now Dan. It was a late victory for Sarah, though Huckabee was ahead for almost the entire week.
October 18th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
Huckabee will continue to stay strong in these polls. He is getting his message out to the folks through his radio/tv show. He is asked to speak at conservative events where he remains committed to the fight for conservative issues. His numbers will keep going up.
October 31st, 2009 at 9:44 am
[...] question given that the former Arkansas governor has led the 2012 presidential field in the two most recent polls of Republican voters. Huck seems to be benefiting from the slow but steady evaporation [...]