Santorum surges into the lead (National poll Santorum 38%, Romney 23%)

Public Policy Polling ^ | 02/11/2012 | Public Policy Polling

[Rational Thought]

Riding a wave of momentum from his trio of victories on Tuesday Rick Santorum has opened up a wide lead in PPP's newest national poll. He's at 38% to 23% for Mitt Romney, 17% for Newt Gingrich, and 13% for Ron Paul.

Part of the reason for Santorum's surge is his own high level of popularity. 64% of voters see him favorably to only 22% with a negative one. But the other, and maybe more important, reason is that Republicans are significantly souring on both Romney and Gingrich. Romney's favorability is barely above water at 44/43, representing a 23 point net decline from our December national poll when he was +24 (55/31). Gingrich has fallen even further. A 44% plurality of GOP voters now hold a negative opinion of him to only 42% with a positive one. That's a 34 point drop from 2 months ago when he was at +32 (60/28).

[Mangia E Statti Zitto]

I have a feeling this poll is Santorum’s high-water mark. He has already started saying things that his supporters have to “explain” and “clarify.” Without a solid record of conservative achievement, that is the kiss of death.

[Engraved-on-His-hands]

Santorum surges into the lead

Aaaaaaahhhhhhhh......

Nice.

[C. Edmund Wright]

You are absolutely correct about Santorum, but you get viciously attacked for rightfully pointing it out, complete with history and documentation to back up your information about him. I can say that I have fully investigated Santorum and find the same alarming things from his past, but I have also been attacked for pointing his many contradictions, out to the forum

What you point out is a startling difference between the average Newt supporter and the average Santorum supporter. The average Newt supporter readily admits the problems and simply says that the ability to attack liberals and the history of success in the 90's is more important than the mistakes - which we readily admit.

Contrast that with the average Santorum supporter, who instead of admitting that Santorum screwed the pooch with Specter - they attack Toomey. Instead of admitting Rick is a pro life big government big union guy - they go back to something tired like Pelosi on the couch (as if we don't know that).

What it tells me is that the Santorum campaign - positioned as wind driven snow pure - will crumble under the first few consecutive days of attack.

[combat_boots]

“Santorum has not been vetted and he needs to be.”

I am going to snark a bit...

IMHO, I have three things to say about this. Vet 0bama, then.

If he’s not going to be vetted, don’t vet Santorum anymore than he has been.

But, if someone’s going to vet Santorum without vetting 0bama, then every living soul who can needs to shout out, put forth and scream IN PUBLIC forums questions about 0bama’s lack of recorts of any kind....with a specific demand, like the COLB, transcript, CT SSN, New Party affiliation, Rezko/Khalidi/Iraqi guy now in the UK (starts with an ‘A’ IIRC), entrance to Columbis, etc. Pick one and push it.

[Lady Lucky]

The dork optics are overwhelming. I watched his speech with the daughter and wife behind him, and I cringed. They forced a few smiles and then defaulted to grim American Gothic. The daughter with her small head on enormous body, her face puckered up with the same dyspeptic look her father sports most of the time — “I just swallowed a live squid!” — and the I-smell-something sneer on the wife — these things unfortunately matter a great deal, usually on a subliminal level.
If you doubt it, remember who’s voting: the people who elected Barack Obama.
Style beats substance.
If he gets any further along, Santorum will be attacked on matters of substance, such as he possesses, and that will only make things worse.
I’d sure rather vote for Santorum than skip voting for president because Romney’s on the ballot; but Santorum is just not going to win the nomination. Of that I am certain.

[txhurl]

Yeah, we kind of ran out of candidates, didn’t we? But wait! says the GOP, no you haven’t! Heeeeee’res Jeb!

I think we’re in trouble, too.

[C. Edmund Wright]

What is it with you Santorum supporters that preclude even a third grade reading comprehension level. You keep going back to points over and over and over and over that are NOT EVEN IN CONTENTION.

Let me write this - ONE MORE TIME - S L O W L Y

I AM NOT, repeat NOT, slamming Santorum for losing 06. Almost everybody lost in 06. I am not saying a damned thing about WHAT the election was really about or any of that. Now, follow CLOSELY TO WHAT I SAY:

Rick Santorum claims today he is the pure conservative who has always run as a true conservative. It is BULLSH-t because in 06 he RAN AS A FLAMING MODERATE.

Again, not blaming him for losing. Thanks to Bush and Rove and Hastert and Frist and others, he was doomed regardless of how he ran. I have ALWAYS said that in defense of Rick even though I do not like him.

BUT - the reason I don’t like him is that he is a pious sanctimonious phony who ran as Democrat Lite in 06. Now, FTR, for all of Newt’s foibles, and they are many, he never RAN A CAMPAIGN on them. Rick has.

[PSYCHO-FREEP]

[Santorum would be Obama’s worst nightmare.]

ROFLMAO!

Seriously! what ever it is you are smoking, you might try to find a 12 step program somewhere to help you get off of it. You are hallucinating uncontrollably again!

[Lady Lucky]

Newt didn’t do too badly among women in SC.
We shall see. Right now, if I were betting, I’d say Obama gets another 4 years. :(

[LuvFreeRepublic]

A lot of people on Twitter are trying to get info out about Santorum and as you would expect, we are bad people for trying to hurt Santorum. It doesn't bother me though. My country and what kind of future my kids have is more important than being called a meanie. Perhaps some tweets directly to Rush and Levin would be helpful. We have a long way to go before the Convention and for sure Santorum will be vetted before then. To be honest with you, I can't see Newt or Romney supporters going with Rick unless he is the last one standing. Should that be the case, Obama will win.

[Rennes Templar]

Mustering all the enthusiasm I can:

I guess I’d vote for Santorum over Obama.

[ez]

Are you serious? The man writes copy for Newt’s PAC “Winning the Future.” Buy a clue!!!

[TomGuy]

It was boring old conservative men that founded and built the greatest nations on this planet.

They were not that 'old'.

In 1776, the average age of the Founding Fathers was 43.8

Adams, John - 41	Adams, Sam - 54	Bartlett - 47	Braxton - 40
Carroll - 39	Chase - 35	Clark - 51	Clymer - 37
Ellery - 49	Floyd - 42	Franklin - 70	Gerry - 32
Gwinnett - 41	Hall - 52	Hamilton - 21	Hancock - 39
Harrison - 50	Hart - 64	Hewes - 46	Heyward - 30
Hooper - 35	Hopkins - 69	Hopkinson - 39	Huntington - 45
Jay - 32	Jefferson - 33	Lee, Francis - 42	Lee, Richard - 44
Lewis - 63	Livingston - 60	Lynch - 27	Madison - 26
McKean - 42	Middleton - 34	Morris, Lewis - 50	Morris, Robert - 42
Morton - 51	Nelson - 38	Paca - 36	Paine - 45
Penn - 35	Read - 43	Rodney - 49	Ross - 46
Rush - 31	Rutledge - 27	Sherman - 55	Smith - 57
Stockton - 46	Stone - 33	Taylor - 60	Thomson - 47
Thornton - 62	Walton - 27	Washington - 44	Whipple - 46
Williams - 45	Wilson - 35	Witherspoon - 53	Wolcott - 50
Wythe - 50

[gitmogrunt]

..more of the same....

[PSYCHO-FREEP]

[don’t vet Santorum anymore than he has been.]

Right, Newt has been utterly trashed from your side, while Santorum is declared off limits. What's fair from your perspective suddenly becomes unfair when the momentum turns around.

IOW, Leave poor little Ricky alone! (But trash Newt at every opportunity!)

[sanescold]

I really think once we conservatives can find a candidate and all get behind him (or her for that matter), then 0bambi will have reason to tremble. We can take the momentum of finding a conservative to rally behind right to the White House and clean out the trash!

[C. Edmund Wright]

Santorum is one of these guys who I have liked for years, but frankly - the more I have found out about him the less I like him. In the summer or early fall, I could have picked Santorum.

But I found him to be petty and pious and sanctimonious and a phony. He never effectively attacks Obama - he only attacks other Republicans and says he can attack Obama better - but he’s never shown me a single minute of evidence that I want him on the national stage representing my point of view.

Then I find out more about his 06 campaign and some of his pro union votes, and I am really ticked at him at that point. My opinion of Santorum does not rest with any agenda or any other person. It comes simply from finding out more about the guy, and I like him less and less every day.

That his most fervent supporters are not well informed and very selective and snarky doesn’t help either. (yes, I’m stereotyping, but it’s ok since I admit I am...)

[SteveAustin]

I can’t get into all the hysterics people on here get into regarding this position or that position somehow disqualifying a candidate. The bottom line is none of these guys is perfect and the Internet world has preserved everything they have said and done for the last ten years, so someone can always “post links”. Reagan would have been screwed under this type of scrutiny.

That is why I am more into optics on the candidate. And you are correct, the dork optics with Santorum are off the charts. I am not sure how he introduces himself to the middle ground of voters, primarily younger voters, we will need to defeat Obama. He’s already been defined as some sort of fundamentalist pastor type. That isn’t going to get the votes we need to defeat Obama.

[Maryhere]

Santorum will not be any more “shamefully weak” than BO was when he ran the first time.

[C. Edmund Wright]

43 back then was about life expectancy - making it the equivalent of 75 today.

Yes, by the standards of their times, they were old.