Checking in on the President
The Obama Campaign raised $70 million last quarter ending September 30. 98% of that was from donors giving less than $250, with an average donation of $56. Meanwhile, Rick Perry has raised $17 million and has $15 cash on hand. There are no numbers available yet on Romney, but his numbers will likely to be the same or less, with about the same cash on hand. Cain has no real fundraising operation in place to take advantage of this polling surge, and this polling surge also took place after the filing deadline for the last quarter, so his fundraising numbers won’t show much more than the 2.5 million he raised last quarter plus the $5 million he loaned his own campaign. All three of these Republican candidates will burn through this money and more in the next six months as they destroy each other. We have already seen the type of ad Perry is going to be running against Romney. While Perry is an idiot and he sucks as actually speaking, he will have to money to go negative on Romney and he will. He already has. He will be an ad war candidate if nothing else, as well as a good retail candidate. The point is, the GOP candidates will have all burned through their warchests by the general, giving the President a $150 million head start on them.
A new Time Magazine poll shows that despite a 44% approval rating and negative feelings about the country’s direction, the President leads new GOP frontrunner Herman Cain 49% to 37% in a new poll, as well as two other plausible nominees: 46-43 over Romney and 50-38 over Perry.
What is keeping Obama in this position both financially and in the polling is the popularity of the ideas he is campaigning on, and the mutual dislike of the Republican Party in general. He, his campaign and his Administration are executing a pretty good PR strategy that are keeping his numbers up despite the strong headwinds. See below:
The President has a winning message here, and this video shows that he is going to continue to press it. It is smart politics, and probably the only thing he can do, given Republican obstruction and sabotage.
How depressing is it that Obama’s support comes not from his good policies, but horror over the idea of a Teabag controlled government?
The same poll has the President leading a generic Republican candidate, but his support is the same as his Approval Rating: 44%. It is only when the generic Republican is replaced by a specific candidate that the President’s numbers go way up. Unfortunately, that says as much about the competition within the Republican Party as it says about the quality (or lack thereof) of their candidates. Much of the President’s lead over specific candidates will, by definition, go up when they settle on one candidate.
Look on the bright side SB. At least Americans are aware enough to express horror over the idea of a Teabag controlled government.
The latest Time poll finds that by a 48% to 37% margin, survey respondents consider President Obama better at his job than his predecessor, George W. Bush.
That is a low bar.