Republicans Rising

They're gonna keep rising too.

Democrats are gonna be flattened in 2014.

At the Wall Street Journal, "Poll Finds Republicans Gain Favor on Key Issues."

The Republican Party is gaining a public-opinion edge on several key issues ahead of the 2014 elections, as Americans question President Barack Obama's leadership on Syria and worry about the country's overall direction, a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll shows.

Republicans are now rated higher than Democrats on handling the economy and foreign policy, and the GOP's lead has strengthened on several other issues, including dealing with the federal deficit and ensuring a strong national defense.

On topics such as health care, Democrats have seen their long-standing advantage whittled to lows not seen in years.

The poll also reflected unease over the economy. Just 27% of Americans think the economy will improve over the next year, the lowest since July 2012, while nearly two-thirds think the country is on the wrong track.

The public tilt on several issues in favor of the GOP, particularly among independents, comes as Mr. Obama's own job-approval rating has hovered around 45% for three months, a tenuous place for a president trying to build support for likely battles with Congress over possible military action in Syria, a proposed overhaul of immigration law and the budget.

"There is no question that a president below 45% job approval starts having a little more difficulty with the bully pulpit," said Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster who conducted the survey with Democratic pollsters Fred Yang and Peter Hart.

Mr. Hart described a president swerving from crisis to crisis who faces a "very bumpy road" this fall. His success going into next year, Mr. Hart said, may best be measured "by his ability to simply keep his head above water."

The jolt of support for Republicans falls well short of a renaissance, as the party itself remains widely unpopular by other measures. In the poll, just 28% of Americans said they hold positive views of the GOP, compared with 40% who view the Democrats positively. Less than half of conservatives see the GOP favorably, and just 13% of independents.

The Democrats' standing has slipped as the White House has dealt with myriad challenges, including widespread opposition to military action in Syria and revelations about government snooping into private communications.

Americans now give Republicans a seven-percentage-point edge on foreign policy. The party lagged behind the Democrats by nine points in the Journal's last sounding on the subject, in 2006, as public opinion turned against the Iraq war. The GOP also has made notable gains since February on which party is seen as best in dealing with the federal deficit and the economy.

The poll of 1,000 Americans also points to challenges for Democrats as they try to maintain their Senate majority and work to gain House seats next year. The poll found Americans giving the party increasingly less credit as stewards in areas long seen as Democratic franchises. The party holds a 17-percentage-point advantage in looking after the middle class, the lowest in decades of Journal polling on the issue.

The Democrats' eight-percentage-point advantage on dealing with health care also was a new low, and half the edge the party held on that issue in February.

At the same time, Mr. Obama faces modestly rising discontent even among the his political base. His approval among all Democrats fell to 78% from a high this year of 88% in January, and among African-Americans it dipped to 85%, from a 2013 high of 93% in April.