Newspapers' poll: Perry has comfortable lead as voting starts [TxGov]

American Statesman ^ | Feb. 13, 2010 | Jason Embry and Corrie MacLaggan

[deport]

Gov. Rick Perry heads into the start of early voting Tuesday with a comfortable lead over his two Republican primary challengers, but he could be in for a tough November fight against the Democratic nominee, a poll commissioned by the Austin American-Statesman and other Texas newspapers shows.

Perry has the support of 45 percent of likely Republican primary voters, while 29 percent back U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison and 17 percent support Wharton activist Debra Medina. Just 8 percent are undecided.

The telephone survey was conducted Feb. 2-10, before Medina said important questions had been raised about whether the U.S. government aided in the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center. Medina later said she has never believed the government was involved, but her initial remarks could weaken her momentum.

In fact, Medina's comments could allow Perry to win more than 50 percent of the vote in the March 2 primary and avoid a runoff, said pollster Mickey Blum of Blum & Weprin Associates, which conducted the survey.

Usually, incumbents don't build support in the final weeks of an election, Blum said. But Perry could break the 50 percent threshold if Medina's comments cause her supporters to break toward Perry or stay home.

Poll results

end excerpts.....

[dusttoyou]

Never mind that Medina is not a Truther and clarified her statements.

LOL!!!

I was definately leaning more and more toward Medina before she Uzi’d herslf in the foot on Beck. No amount of “who you gonna beleive me or your lyin ears”, is going to “clarify” herself out of this.

[deport]

Months ago, didn’t Hutchison state an intention to resign from the Senate when she began to campaign for governor seriously?

---

As far as I know she indicated she’d resign by the fall or by year end. Then she decided she needed to stay in DC to fight the health care thing and cap/trade. I think she also indicated she’d resign after that win or lose the gov. race. So who knows at this juncture if she’ll resign if she gets defeated on Mar. 2. Her term is up in two years so I’m hoping she’s gone by then in either case.

[SmokingJoe]

“She is not a professional politician hence her conflicting statements. “

Sorry, I can't agree with you there.
The fact that she is not a professional politicians is the more reason why her answer should have been very clear. No double talk. It's very simple really: There is simply NO WAY Bush planned and organised for 3,000 Americans to be slaughtered at the WTC on 9/11. There is no “ifs” or “buts” or any “clarification” about it.
Way I see it, if you actually believe that there is some possibility that Bush planned and organized to murder 3,000 Americans siting in their offices in Manhattan, then you are a complete nut job, and should be sent to the funny house.
And I am speaking as someone that lives in New York, and had my office right next to the WTC when it happened, and had quite a few friends that got murdered on 9/11.
Medina is finished I am afraid, and I actually preferred her to Perry before.

[Proud of Texas]

I totally agree with you. This Texan will be voting for Perry. I considered Medina to shake things up but this issue is a deal breaker!! She is incompetent and delusional to even consider Bush was involved in murdering Americans.

[The Anti-One]

"Stand on your high and mighty principals all you want but I’ll stand on mine and vote to keep a dem out of the office. The two aren’t the same no matter how you spin it."

You're right. Republican is spelled differently and the word democrat does have more two letters than the word Republican. Aside from that however feel free to list the differences between the RINOs Perry and Hutchison and their liberal comrades in the Democrat party. And please provide evidence to support those claims. Please remember, we Texans had to strongarm Perry into rejecting the "stimulus" payoff obama tried to force Texas to take. Perry was all for it. He's for bigger government just like his communist brethren. Hutchison is a pro-deather and only occasionally supports gun rights. Perry wants government run healthcare...

Your turn.

[SmokingJoe]

“I will say however that I would vote for a “truther” in a New York second over Perry or Hutchison”

That's the problem right there.
A “truther” is essentially someone that needs to be carried away in a straitjacket by four rather large gentlemen, and locked away in a room with 4 white walls for good. I wouldn't trust a "truther" to run even the public toilets.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

I was definately leaning more and more toward Medina before she Uzi’d herslf in the foot on Beck.

Look, the "Macaca" days are over.

Medina had a bad interview, but she recovered from it and clarified herself. Same example as Palin's interview with Couric.

Honestly if she was really a Truther, would people still come out to see her? I just don't see this as a nail in her political coffin because those criticizing her were already in Goodhair's camp anyway.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Until you have irrefutable EVIDENCE that Medina was involved in Trutherism or made statements prior to the Beck interview then you got nothing.

(Robert DeNiro from "The Untouchables") - "NOTHING!"

[MinuteGal]

A couple of weeks ago, Beck had on a panel of brillliant conservative economists. To make a long story short, they unanimously agreed that Texas, while not perfect in all ways, was one of the states that is TOPS in good financial condition and in welcoming and supportive of new and existing business taxwise and otherwise. This reflects well on Republican governor Perry.

As is always the case, the usual number of holier-than-thou conservatives will go off in diverse directions because Perry is not as perfect as was the only perfect One to ever walk the earth.

This is how the Breck Girl and/or the Democrat can end up sliding into the governor's mansion....laughing their tushies off.

Leni

[Norman Bates]

Look, the "Macaca" days are over. Medina had a bad interview, but she recovered from it and clarified herself.

Yeah right! You are really whistling past the graveyard. Medina is going to lose - and big.

[deport]

How’d Perry balance the budget after you forcing him to reject stimilus money?....

Think you could force a democrat to do as you so greatly did with Perry? I doubt it very seriously so the results of electing one on your high and mighty principle falls into your corner.

[SmokingJoe]

I have no idea if she was involved on trutherism before or not. Like I said, I actually preferred her to the other 2 before, so I had obvioulsly assumed she was not involved with truthers. But then I listened to the tape of her Glenn Beck interview and that was it, as far as I am concerned.

[Hattie]

How many have heard her? Watched two debates and was not impressed. Then heard her on Beck. There are youtubes of her on Alex Jones. Heard enough. I have to vote for Perry.

[The Anti-One]

"“I will say however that I would vote for a “truther” in a New York second over Perry or Hutchison”

That's the problem right there. A “truther” is essentially someone that needs to be carried away in a straitjacket by four rather large gentlemen, and locked away in a room with 4 white walls for good. I wouldn't trust a "truther" to run even the public toilets."

Why? Because they dare to think for themselves? Because they want answers?

I must say that until recently I was in lockstep with the rest of the lemmings in this country. I lost several close friends on 9/11 and I have no problems wiping Islam off the planet but I've come to learn that all is not as it seems. Like Obama spending millions to keep us from finding out where he was born the government has pulled out all stops to keep certain information and items containing valuable information (the black boxes for example) out of the public's view. In fact for the first time in history planes have crashed and the boxes were not recovered? BS! And you are either willfully naive about the subject of you just can't handle the truth. Either way only a communist would not vote for someone simply because he/she thinks he/she knows what someone else is thinking. Especially when one considers the fact that what happened on 9/11 is irrelevant when it comes to dispatching the duties of Governor.

Do you have evidence that Medina is what you Perry supporters claim she is? I mean... there were mountains of evidence to prove obama wasn't what he was claiming to be. Do you have anything that would show Medina to be anything but what she claims?

You're not one of the obama administrations thought police are you? Or are you simply an elitist that believes the common man or woman has no place in high ranking public office? If one is not a blue-blood they do not deserve to serve is this correct?

[dusttoyou]

Maybe not in Wisconsin, but she’s done down here.

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

A “truther” is essentially someone that needs to be carried away in a straitjacket by four rather large gentlemen

Basically Medina gave the same answer Palin did when she was asked about Obama's birth. Said that people should have the right to question the government on these things.

The majority of these Tea Party folks are former Ron Paul supporters. Paul's presidential campaign was hijacked by the 9/11 Truthers and anti-war types. This small minuscule percentage is trying to do the same with other candidates running on the Tea Party platform (Rand Paul for example). So I'm not surprised that they're trying to influence Medina's campaign. Did she give a questionable answer to Beck? Yes. Did she follow up and clarified herself? Yes. As long as she did that, then this is a non-story.

How FReepers can support a statist career Governor like Perry who is nothing more than the Texan version of Mitt Romney is beyond me.

[e_castillo]

A little bit sticking to the windows but not much. I have to go outside and do some stuff so the wind is going to be a problem. Nothing new there.

[SeattleBruce]

you got the home grown RINO

the Washington Insider RINO

and

the TRUTHER

what a choice.
++++++++++++++

Argh...no doubt.

[SmokingJoe]

“Why? Because they dare to think for themselves? Because they want answers?”

Answers to what? Oh wait... you mean answers to whether that big, bad, fiendish mastermind, George Bush planned and executed 9/11 or not?

“I must say that until recently I was in lockstep with the rest of the lemmings in this country”

You mean us poor lemmings who actually believe that it was Al Quaeda and Bin Laden that planned and carried out 9/11?

“but I've come to learn that all is not as it seems”

You might need to have a very deep, personal conversation with Van Jones.

[The Anti-One]

Aaaah... don't pout. We both know that Perry didn't balance anything. The State House did and yes... Democrats all over the country are starting to feel the pressure of their constituents and their ire at the ballot boxes. Democrats, like Perry, are waking up and realizing that the serfs are pissed and we aren't going to take it anymore. We are voting them out of office and like Perry they are trying to change their stripes so that they can stay in office. If Perry wins it will only be because people like you slandered Medina so effectively that she couldn't recover. I love how this tactic is employed I must admit. You all wait until a few days before people head to the polls to trash your opposition's reputation whether true or not.

Shame on you.