From what I've seen, polls like this one and this one that have Newt beating Romney in the primaries having him LOSING to Obama in the generals. If we carry your scenario to its conclusion, then we either vote for Romney in the primaries, or by voting for Newt we ending up voting for (losing to) Obama the generals. If that's the choice, I'll vote on principles. But, if it makes you feel any better, I'll support Newt once it becomes clear the only other choice is Romney.You apparently don't realize that Obama vs. Generic Republican or Obama vs. Republican Candidate polls are totally worthless at this point. Most analyst will tell you as much. They're worthless for many reasons - most of which can be deduced with common sense.
The polls I posted to you were not generic. The respondents specifically stated who they would vote for between Obama and Newt, and between Obama and Romney. As as you pointed out in post 56, "Polls historically get fairly accurate this close to voting."
However, these type polls still serve a purpose to those that promote them (media, establishment, opposing candidates). They can be used as a tool to create perceptions and create/destroy momentum for a target candidate amongst the great unwashed. Based on your comments, when it comes to these stated ends, you prove that they work...
How do polls that say "Obama tops Gingrich by 46-40 percent in the new poll." and "Obama would defeat Gingrich, 51 percent to 38 percent." prove that generic "Obama vs. GOP candidate" polls work on anyone?
I understand the need to rally around one candidate to prevent the left from choosing Romney for us, but I'm not yet sold that Newt is that candidate.