In early April 1992, Bush was cleaning Clinton's clock in national head-to-head polls in all but one area.
According to a The New York Times/CBS News Poll surveyed in late March, Clinton trailed Bush in questions measuring leadership qualities, honesty and integrity, clarity of proposals for the next four years, and saying what he really believes. Bush led Clinton in a hypothetical one-on-one matchup 49 to 40 percent. Clinton led in only one area - more Americans thought that he cared about the needs and problems of people like them - by a 4 to 3 ratio.
Bush's performance in this area has been falling. Will Bush be vulnerable the way his father was vulnerable, or have the Republicans successfully pre-empted this perception this time around?