Left-Wing Smears Heat Up as Obama Falters in the Polls

In the comments to my post yesterday, on Barack Obama's weaknesses in public opinion, I cited Victor David Hanson's explanation as to how the Wright controversy could prove fatal to the Democrat in the fall (the white working-class vote's not in the tank).

TBogg, an attack-master at Firedoglake, drove by here to leave this slur against Hanson's working class thesis:

Yes. Because if there is anyone who understands "white working-class" voters it is a classics professor who collects wingnut welfare from the Hoover Institution and who has staked his somewhat minimal reputation on having others fight his Thermopylae wetdream.

"Wingnut welfare"? I haven't heard that one before, but the "Thermopylae wetdream" is a classic in the "chicken hawk" genre.

Well there's more of this anti-neoconism from "Attaturk" at FDL, who tries to take down William Kristol's commentary this morning (Kristol suggested Obama's "vulnerability" has been exposed in recent polling trends).

Attaturk takes issue with this paragraph from Kristol:

In a New York Times/CBS News poll in late February, Obama was defeating John McCain 50 to 38. Two months later, the Times/CBS poll had McCain and Obama tied. The poll that came out yesterday showed Obama reopening a lead over McCain — but clearly over this period a vulnerability for Obama was exposed.

Here's Attaturk's comeback:

The latest CBS poll, that shows this awesome damage to Obama?

Obama (D) 51%
McCain (R) 40%

Wow, that's really, um, not at all devastating. No matter how much the chattering classes -- the wealthy, white, actually elitist chattering classes -- cannot grasp it. Sadly, for Kristol and the rest of the fans of things like Limbaugh's "Operation Chaos", Clinton kicks McCain's ass by a similar margin.

And unnoticed by the nation's editorial writers and gasbags of cable news, especially by the Kristols and the Stephanopouli, the public seems to have determined the real culprit in the Jeremiah Wright matter:

Concerning Rev. Wright's coverage in the media the new poll sites that according to registered voters polled the attention paid has been:

Too Much.....56%
Too Little.......5%
About Right...34%

Not that this fact will stop a talking head from trying.

The problem here?

Kristol never discounts Obama's floated back up a bit in the polling data. He's suggesting Obama's got potentially fatal liabilities. He also provides polling data (from Fox) outside of CBS's survey that shows McCain running very strong against Clinton, and beating Obama outright (see also Gallup's findings from May 1, "Clinton’s vs. Obama’s Strengths in the General Election").

Note too USA Today's survey out this morning, which reveals more weaknesses in the Obama camp:

Barack Obama's national standing has been significantly damaged by the controversy over his former pastor, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, raising questions for some voters about the Illinois senator's values, credibility and electability.

The erosion of support among Democrats and independents raises the stakes in Tuesday's Indiana and North Carolina primaries, which represent a chance for Obama to reassert his claim to a Democratic nomination that seems nearly in his grasp. A defeat in Indiana and a close finish in North Carolina, where he's favored, could fuel unease about his ability to win in November. Such results also could help propel Hillary Rodham Clinton's uphill campaign all the way to the Democratic convention in August.

In the USA TODAY survey, taken Thursday through Saturday, Clinton leads Obama among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents by 7 percentage points, the first time in three months she has been ahead. Two weeks ago, before the controversy over comments by Jeremiah Wright reignited, Obama led by 10 points.

In February, Democrats and Democratic leaners by 33 points said Obama had a better shot at beating Republican John McCain in November. Clinton is now seen as the stronger candidate by 5 points.

Obama led Clinton by 10 points?

Hey Attaturk! No damage to Obama, eh? No siree, bob!

USA Today says otherwise:

The Wright controversy has been especially problematic for Obama's campaign because it has helped shape Americans' emerging assessments of the candidate. In the USA TODAY survey:

• Obama's unfavorable rating climbs to a new high, 37%. His negative rating among independents, usually the swing voters in national elections, jumped from 27% in February to 36% now.

Even so, Obama's favorable-unfavorable rating of 58%-37% remains more positive than Clinton's 52%-45%. McCain's standing is the strongest of all: 62% favorable-30% unfavorable.

• One in four Americans who are following the controversy say their "best guess" is that Obama agrees with Wright's views, even though the senator has said repeatedly he finds them offensive and wrong.

• Obama has lost the 8-point advantage he held over Clinton in February as someone who "shares your values." Clinton has a 5-point edge among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents.

Now, folks can debate the validity of various polls, but the trend in the data - as measured by a range of surveys - has been a significant drop in Obama's favorables.

But looking at the range of data is not the point for Attaturk, or TBogg. Nope, it's all about slamming those evil neocons, living high off the hog at NYT and the Hoover Institution.

We can't let a little disconfirming data get in the way of a good smear!