These polls mean nothing 6 months before the first primary

[DJcairo]

Come on you guys...chill. Ask most people ont eh street and they haven't even heard of any of these guys. I mean, if you believe the polls you'd have to beleive that Gephardt was going to become president according to another Zogby poll that came out today. These are only snapshots.

[onehandle]

1. Yep.

Clinton was a longshot at this point in '91.

[rock]

2. True. Our media could

do one six months after the election and still get it wrong. Example: who do you think won election 2000?

[Maple]

3. It gives the candidates

momentum. So that by the time the public starts hearing about them, there are already favorites that have polled well.

Of course every now and then you get a clunker poll.

[liberalnurse]

4. Read'em and weep!

Its only going to get better, bigger and all empowering to the nation. There is no turning back, we have just begun.

Dean has confronted *bush head on.....we have a leader!

[AWD]

5. Translation -

Translation - "Wah wah wah."

Of course, if Kerry were winning, you'd be trumping those poll numbers left and right.

[dsc]

6. I actually tend to agree with you

but people supporting your candidate called me deluded when I said so a few months ago when Dean was still in single digits nationally. Gee, how times change.

[Nicholas_J]

7. True

But one trend in the last 50 yeas of polling has been constant. Those who poll highest duringh the early nominations cycle lose the nomination.

Dean may have picked up a few million recentlyu, but the buzz is that hisw campaign is nearly broke, having spent too much too early on in the cycle. Most of what was picked up in the first and second quarters is gone.

[dsc]

8. false again

Gore out polled Bradley the entire time. Bush out polled his rivals the entire time. Those are just two examples off the top of my head. I also think, though don't know for sure, that Dukakis had the lead by this point in 88.

[tedoll78]

10. Broke?

That's new to me.

Link?

[arcos]

14. No link, obviously. n/t

[w4rma]

18. Sen. Lieberman was the guy polling highest in this race. (n/t)

[mandyky]

9. It shows Dean's name recognition has improved

and that people considering him seem to be coming out of other campaigns.
It might not mean much, but it does mean something, the race is wide open, but now there is a top dog, named Howard Dean. And I'll let ya know when he peaks, it ain't even close to happening yet. Getting Owen's endorsement means he has a shot aat the congressional black caucus endorsement.

[paulk]

11. I think you're correct

Dean is just starting to get some face time with the American people - the one's who actually decide elections, not the zealots in Iowa or N.H.

The next 6 months will be crucial for the Dean campaign. The question is - as he moves to the center, will his early supporters desert him?

[tedoll78]

17. I get around..

and I've met one person who might leave him if he moves to the center (hinging on a running mate selection). Otherwise, most of the supporters I've met treat his ability to move to the center (balanced budgets, NRA, Progressives running a candidate against him, etc) as an asset. They want to win in the E.C., so they realize it's a necessary step.

[Nicholas_J]

12. Well lets look at this 1999 info about August polls...

August 3, 1999:
Poll numbers are still stagnant for the Vice President, even as President and Mrs. Clinton enjoy a decent boost in their own approval ratings. Mr. Gore actually loses three points since last month even as the President gains nine. The slump could come as good news to Bill Bradley, who seems to have gained some ground of his own. Of course, the news isn't completely good for the Republicans - Voters are picking Social Security as a more important issue than tax cuts, but at least they can take heart from Mayor Giuliani's ongoing lead over Mrs. Clinton.



August 17, 1999:
Would you vote for this man? Polls continue to show little sign of progress for the Vice President, and he even sinks to 25% in the latest Fox poll during a three-way matchup with Governor Jesse Ventura. Things are so tough that Bill Bradley has even pulled to within single digits in the Fox poll. Elsewhere, Gallup finds that voters would be kind to lawmakers who vote for the GOP tax cut plan, although this could change rapidly when considering the President's rhetorical skills. Also, Mrs. Clinton regains ten points against Rudy Giuliani in the latest Zogby poll, making the race far too close to call....


August 31, 1999:
The Vice President apparently has a tough fight on his hands just for normally Democratic-leaning California, and still trails Governor Bush badly in favorable ratings. Mr. and Mrs. Clinton have also seen their favorable ratings sink in recent months, although we all know nobody really has anything to worry about as long as the economy holds out. Also this week, voters as usual tell pollsters they are being taxed too much, but Republicans could still be taking a chance if they think this will translate into widespread support for their tax plan


http://www.evote.com/index.asp?Page=/polls_section/1999-08/archive.asp

I rather had a good laugh last week when Dean supporters criticized the democrats who ran supporting the Bush tax plan in 2000 because poss stated that in 2000 most Americans were against the Bush Tax cuts he promised in 2000.

This little blast from the past indicates exactly the opposite.

I am beginning to find that it is not the Democratic Party and DLC who have sold out the party, but the average democrat, always selecting the guy with the flashiest campaign and who managed to SAY what everyone wishs to hear. Brilliant and intelligent and visionary politicians like Kucinich are ignored while a bullshit artist like Dena gets attention.

It was well know in Vermont among journalists and very old liberal papers than Dean's campaign style was mostly accomplisehd vby lying about his record and hus pponenents, but failing to pass substantial legisislation, his wins coming 100 percent by his allegiance to Republican style governanace, while repeating democratic campaign lines. He nearly lost his last run, and every poll in Vemront indicated that if he ran opne more time, he would face a massive loss

Dean kept waivering between running for governor again, changing the date for his decisions over and over again, until the polls showed him losing to the moderate Republican opposition by 66/33 percent.

HE decided to try the same B.S. techinque at the presidential level
and right now, since no one else is running hard, it seems to be effective. But in Vermont, Dean had no serious competition.

Dena has spent virtually all he has made in donation on his high level campaigning very early in the campaign. After September the other candidates will simply out commercial Dean, as right now Kerry and Edwards each have 15 to 20 times as much money available as Dean has. It may turn out to be the old tortoise and haere story that is common in the nomination race.

For the sake of the nation, I hope thie demagogue is stopped.

[dsc]

16. Every one of your links

show exactly what I said. Which is that GORE lead BRADLEY. GORE had the EARLY lead and WON the primary. You said the exact opposite was true. In short you were dead wrong even using your links.


And by the way. Please use quotes in your post to seperate out what you say and what others say. I can't even comment on what is on the bottom part of your post due to not knowing if it is yours or someone elses words. I know I sometimes do he same thing but you are about the worst offender on this I have ever seen.

[Thomas Jefferson]

13. Amen. True. True. True.

You get an A for being correct.

[DrFunkenstein]

15. How Many Iraqis Were Involved in 9/11?

WASHINGTON--A third of the American public believes U.S. forces found weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, according to a recent poll, and 22 percent said Iraq actually used chemical or biological weapons.

Before the war, half of those polled in a survey said Iraqis were among the 19 hijackers Sept. 11, 2001.

"Most people get little whiffs and fragments of news, not in any organized way," said Thomas Mann, a scholar at the Brookings Institution, a centrist-liberal think tank. "And there have been a lot of conflicting reports on the weapons."

"The public is susceptible to manipulation, and if they hear officials saying there is a strong connection between Iraq and al-Qaida terrorists, then they think there must be a connection," Mann said.

http://www.charleston.net/stories/061503/ter_15poll.shtml