Poll: GOP candidates top Obama in hypothetical 2012 race

CNN ^ | 11/04/10

[MissesBush]

Washington (CNN) -- His party got its clock cleaned in Tuesday's midterm elections, but President Barack Obama still remains competitive in some hypothetical 2012 presidential election matchups, especially against Sarah Palin, a new poll shows.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Thursday also indicates that at the unofficial start of the race for the Republican presidential nomination, the field of possible contenders appears wide open with no front-runner.

Twenty-one percent of Republicans say they would most likely support 2008 GOP White House candidate and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee for their party's 2012 presidential nomination, according to the poll.

The number is 20 percent for another 2008 Republican presidential hopeful, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Fourteen percent say they support Palin, the former Alaska governor and 2008 GOP vice presidential nominee, with 12 percent backing former House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia.

The remaining candidates, whose names were all in single digits, are led by Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, who also ran for the GOP presidential nomination the last time around, followed by Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, Rep. Mike Pence of Indiana, and former Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania.

The poll's release comes as Santorum visits New Hampshire to give a speech about the midterm election results and the future of the Republican party. No one has yet to announce a bid for the GOP nomination.

In a possible general election showdown, Obama leads Palin 52-44 percent among all registered voters.

[af_vet_1981]

I don't want these re-treads from 2008 like Romney, Huckabee or Palin.

Although I will support whoever the GOP nominates against Obama, I hope it is someone who can win. I doubt any of these three could win; Romney will not unify the GOP because he is a Mormon who was the Governor of one of the most liberal states in the country and there is very little he can do to overcome that liabiliy. Huckabee has a better chance but doesn't seem to have inspired enough folks last time to indicate he could do so this time. Palin has too many folks that despise her, too much ground to overcome, and can play a much more effective role by doing what she did in the midterms than running for President. Let the Democrats attack her while someone else like Pence runs. The GOP needs a candidate with a solid record and low negatives who can make his/her case to the American people in the heartland. The Left and New York coast are never going to go GOP for President in 2012.

[Minus_The_Bear]

I have a better chance of being President than Palin.

Her likability numbers are below %25... Those are horrible.

[Gator113]

Watch and see....

[sonic109]

She’ll never win ..flame away ..

[Minus_The_Bear]

I hope Republicans like four more years of Obama.

[xuberalles]

Thanks and I agree with you 100%. She has been impressive in taking the fight to the powers that be, not taking their attacks lying down, but I just think we are playing with fire if she gets the nomination. We can’t afford to risk another four years with a Marxist in office. I honestly believe if we just go with a solid conservative...doesn’t have to be anything too sexy...then Obama will have an extremely difficult time getting re-elected. Pawlenty, Jindal, perhaps even Bachmann or Rubio as a VP candidate, we will be a tough ticket to beat. Obama has a ton of negatives around his neck right now and we don’t need to distract the voters with another circus sideshow.

[xuberalles]

Same here. Why distract from his failures and really their base? If Sarah is smart she will remain a strong voice in conservative circles and prepare for a run down the road. Perhaps she should even consider a high profile senate run and serve a few terms in Congress. As for now, we just need a solid, articulate, conservative ticket in 2012 so that Obama has nothing to fall back on except his own miserable record.

[Pox]

Your personal view of Mrs. Palin is beside my point. It does not matter who is chosen as the Republican nominee, if the left and MSM believes that the nominee has any chance at all of beating Obama, or whoever runs for the dems, they will mercilessly attack them as they have Mrs. Palin for the last 2 years. That is a guarantee.

Your “talking points” concerning Mrs. Palin are absurd, IMO. While it is late and I am not currently inclined to rebut them one at a time, I doubt you like Mrs. Palin in any context and whether you do or not makes no difference to me. In the end, you are simply letting the other side make your choice for the Republican nominee for you, and that is a sure path to defeat.

[Impy]

If Thune runs we are gonna have a lot of educating to do.

He’s still blindly loved for ousting Dasshole.

[Dengar01]

Your personal view of Mrs. Palin is beside my point. It does not matter who is chosen as the Republican nominee, if the left and MSM believes that the nominee has any chance at all of beating Obama, or whoever runs for the dems, they will mercilessly attack them as they have Mrs. Palin for the last 2 years. That is a guarantee.

Your “talking points” concerning Mrs. Palin are absurd, IMO. While it is late and I am not currently inclined to rebut them one at a time, I doubt you like Mrs. Palin in any context and whether you do or not makes no difference to me. In the end, you are simply letting the other side make your choice for the Republican nominee for you, and that is a sure path to defeat.

If you can explain to me how someone like Palin can win a NATIONAL election I would love to hear your opinion.

The only woman candidate that won of the bunch was Nikki Haley and that was a close election in super conservative South Carolina.

You seem enamored with Palin as though she is some sort of God. I have studied elections in great detail going all the way back to heated elections like the Election of 1877 (End of Reconstruction)

If you honestly believe Palin can win I would love to hear why other than she is conservative. Well Angle was conservative, O'Donnell was conservative.

My focus in undergrad was American Elections along with a Bachelor of History and a Graduate Degree in Business focus Finance.

If you want me to bring up every election starting from Washington to Obama and the very minute details I can send you a long paper, maybe it would educate you.

I have books breaking down the 2000 New Hampshire Primary down to the precinct. Including issues which swayed voters to vote McCain over Bush in New Hampshire 2000.

I love discussing history and political history specifically. I can bring up candidates for over 200 years who were failures for many reasons.

I like Palin, I won't bash her, but can you give me a logical, not emotional, but a logical reason for her to resign as Governor of Alaska to pursue a book and media role on Fox? I would like a logical answer, an emotional answer will just prove you think she can walk on water and part the Red Sea.

[Pox]

If you can explain to me how someone like Palin can win a NATIONAL election I would love to hear your opinion. The only woman candidate that won of the bunch was Nikki Haley and that was a close election in super conservative South Carolina.

I detect a measure of misogyny here, but to each his own I suppose. I would respond by turning the question back at you with "can you explain to me how a blatant marxist like Obama win a national election", and I suppose the answer would be obvious, and I believe would also be applicable to Mrs. Palin's good chance to win as well.

You seem enamored with Palin as though she is some sort of God.

Your blind disgust with anyone who supports Mrs. Palin seems to compel you to "pigeonhole" anyone with any level of support of Mrs. Palin into a distince category that you assign with a display of personal disgust and arrogance, IMO. Sorry to burst your bubble, but enthusiastic support along with a determined defense does not automatically equal idolization in the degree you assume. Although I respect Mrs. Palin and her values, I do not blindly follow anyone, and I am not particularly thrilled with some of her choices and moves, but again, that does not deserve your condescending arrogance, IMO.

I have studied elections in great detail going all the way back to heated elections like the Election of 1877 (End of Reconstruction)

My focus in undergrad was American Elections along with a Bachelor of History and a Graduate Degree in Business focus Finance.

If you want me to bring up every election starting from Washington to Obama and the very minute details I can send you a long paper, maybe it would educate you.

I love discussing history and political history specifically. I can bring up candidates for over 200 years who were failures for many reasons.

This is precious! So I'm basically an uneducated peon who must bow to your vast knowledge and brilliance. Arrogance indeed!

I like Palin, I won't bash her, but can you give me a logical, not emotional, but a logical reason for her to resign as Governor of Alaska to pursue a book and media role on Fox?

BS! Your lefty talking points are in direct contrast to your claim, but I'm of the opinion you're unable to see the irony in that truism. Again, all I have to do is point to the election of Obama to validate any belief that Mrs. Palin can win a National election. As for the logical reason she resigned from the position of Governor, that reason has been discussed on this site ad nauseum, and if you cannot bring yourself to acknowledge that her primary reasons were to remove herself as a nonstop-nuisance-lawsuit-target that limited her maneuverability whilst in that position along with her desire to take advantage of her new found national popularity to help the "conservative cause", then reasoning with you is an exercise in futility, and pointless as you are simply regurgitating pointless "gossip" that anyone can easily access on any leftist television show 24x7.

I would like a logical answer, an emotional answer will just prove you think she can walk on water and part the Red Sea.

Again, unbelievable condescending arrogance. What is the point of actually having a discussion with someone with such an attitude? I see none, so I leave you to your beliefs.

[Dengar01]

A) You are wrong thinking I don't support women candidates. I worked for my congresswoman in her Congressional Office for two years then I ran her successful 2006 campaign. She is a Republican woman who could easily win a statewide election in Illinois. In fact I was hoping she would run for Senate instead of the far left RINO Mark Kirk.

At this moment Congresswoman Biggert is the only Republican woman serving in Congress from the State of Illinois. There is one other woman serving from Illinois and she makes Karl Marx look like a conservative (Jan Schakowsky).

I told you I have no problem personally with Sarah Palin. I was excited when McCain announced her as VP and I along with many others thought she would bring more women and conservatives to support McCain.

As far as Obama goes he won on personality and anti-Bush fever. I met Obama back in 2005 at an event where President Bush spoke. I spoke with him for about ten minutes. I called my mother and told her "this guy is going to be President, he almost had me believing". My mother is now deceased and didn't live to see him elected, but his personality and charisma far outshines Bill Clinton.

Karl Rove got BLASTED here on FR for stating that O'Donnell had no chance. And he was right. It wasn't because she was a conservative woman, she ran an awful campaign in a very blue state. I was praying that her, Linda McMahon, Angle, Fiorina and Whitman would win. If you don't believe this go do a history search on me all of my posts supported these women.

I supported Linda McMahon in the Conn. primary. I supported O'Donnell over the marxist RINO Castle in the Del. primary. So to imply that I hate women is ridiculous.

The problem with Sarah Palin is her negatives, her negatives are worse than Obama who is the worst President in the history of this nation!

I don't know why independents don't like her. I like her but I am a conservative. Sadly, I fear that people want a moderate person even though we are clearly a conservative nation as was seen on Tuesday.

Look at IL. We knocked off four dems in the House, a RINO won Obama's Senate seat and a liberal democrat won the Governor's race over a downstate conservative. Polling showed that indepedents though Quinn (dem) was more in line with their beliefs even though he is going to tax us to death along with redistricting this state to the point where it is likely that I will have Bobby Rush as my congressman. The black panther Bobby Rush...

I was one of a few FReepers devastated after Tuesday because of that race. I went from poll to poll and got lawyers and cops out to drive the union thugs away (I have video of this).

I was working with other FReepers in IL on election day and they can tell you this so to imply that I am a liberal is unbelievable. I have never voted for a democrat in my life and never will. I did not support a specific republican in a Cook County race instead I chose an Independent (Forrest Claypool) who I thought had a better shot at knocking off the democrat.

If you have any more questions about my political ideology, my support for women candidates or any other questions about my opinions you can click on my name and look up my posts.

[07Jack]

However if Thune runs, he could be useful in regards to diluting the Romney vote and opening the door for a more acceptable alternative....provided there is one.