Neck and Neck -- New Newsweek Numbers Sat 11:14 am est

[BlueNomad]

Neck and Neck -- New Newsweek Numbers Sat 11:14 am est
Alex Just interviewed Marcus on MSNBC

By Marcus Mabry
Newsweek
Updated: 11:14 a.m. ET Oct. 23, 2004Oct. 23 - With the number of days before the presidential election dwindling down to single digits, a new NEWSWEEK poll finds President George W. Bush and Sen. John F. Kerry running in an ever tighter race. The poll of 1,008 registered voters, including 880 likely voters—conducted Thursday and Friday—finds President Bush’s lead in last week’s NEWSWEEK poll has evaporated. At the same time, Sen. Kerry still hasn’t been able to close the deal with voters.


In the national horserace, Bush-Cheney and Kerry-Edwards are tied 46 percent to 46 percent among registered voters. Ralph Nader and his running mate Peter Camejo, on the ballot in only 34 states and Washington DC, receive 2 percent of the vote. Six percent of registered voters are undecided. Among likely voters, the Bush-Cheney ticket leads 48 percent to 46 percent for Kerry-Edwards, with 1 percent for Nader-Camejo and 5 percent undecided. In last week’s poll (Oct. 14-15), Bush-Cheney led 48 percent to 46 percent among registered voters, and 50 percent to 44 among likely voters. This week’s poll cuts the president’s lead among likely vot­ers by more than half, well within the plus or minus 3-point margin of error.

<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6312421/site/newsweek/>

[vickie]

1. JK is on the move....

[Auntie Bush]

3. Fantastic!

[PSU84]

2. Bush's fate is sealed.

His accidental presidency* terminates on November 2.

[w4rma]

4. Ignore the polls. They are a distraction and a waste of time that could be

spent doing something productive.

[troublemaker]

6. If so, how on Earth does anyone find time to criticize polling threads?

[ruggerson]

5. Bush job approval sinks to 46

[BlueNomad]

7. yes all rigamorale

aside, I don't think an incumbent can get away from so many bad approval numbers in the 40s .... I would like to see it at 45. Then I think that's it. Stick a fork in.

[troublemaker]

8. White Evangelicals at 76% for Bush. Is that high, low, average?

Anybody Know?

By the way -- Kerry has a lead on who you trust on Gay Marriage!

[YEM]

9. That sounds low.

I heard he had over 85% in the last election.

[BlueNomad]

10. That is an interesting number...

in recent weeks I have heard folks here remark that Bush will only take 75% of this group not the 100% Jennifer Duink Religion Reporter from the Washington Times claimed this morning. It would be good to keep it in the 70s and below; and it would be great if some sat at home and chose not to vote this year.

I cannot imagine that the lesbian brouhaha hurt Kerry with this group. These folks are not his base. They are however George's. Beside don't underestimate Bush saying He Does NOT know if homosexuality is a choice. Lots of rabid evangelicals think there's no ifs ands or buts--it's an abomination and a choice....

[troublemaker]

11. "President Bush thinks sodomy might be part of God's plan"

[hadrons]

12. hitting Kerry on Mary Big-Time just reminds the fundies she's a lesbian

they don't like that

[Dogmudgeon]

13. With good reason

Fundies/Evangelicals are getting more educated about politics. They hear the loud ranting against gays, but when they look into the right's actual agenda, they see all the counter-scriptural actions writ large.

Most born-agains will acknowledge that the Bible states that homosexuality is a sin, but when they measure that against war-mongering, promiscuous use of the Death Penalty, not to mention epic amounts of bearing false witness, they increasingly realize that they've been played.

Most of them understand the difference between error and malice. They accept salvation for Original Sin but correctly look down upon Initiative Sin.

--bkl

[TomNickell]

14. "Presidents get what they poll."

That's the conventional Poli Sci wisdom, anyway. The undecideds break for the challneger and some of the Pres's support is vapor.

So, these numbers are actually encouraging.