Earlier this week, Bill Clinton made the stunningly absurd and totally unfounded allegation that Hillary was "winning the general election" while Barack was losing it and that the media was engaging in a "cover-up."
Not only is this illogical assertion laughable on its face, it requires the major polling firms of Rasmussen Reports and Survey USA to have conspired to produce fake polls that show Obama capturing more than enough swing states to potentially win a general election against John McCain (as of the present time).
First off, because the general election is in November, it is not possible to say that someone is "winning the general election." Secondly, the media is not engaging in a cover-up regarding Obama's or Hillary's potential chances of winning the general election and Obama is not "losing the general election" against McCain as Bill Clinton puts it. True, the last round of Quinnipiac polls weren't favorable to Obama, but the most recent Survey USA and Rasmussen polls were. And thirdly, polling numbers in the Spring are usually different from polling numbers in the Fall, particularly given the context of a bitterly contested and closely fought primary season with tensions running high across the Democratic electorate.
In looking at the latest round of swing state polls conducted by Survey USA and Rasmussen Reports, one sees that Obama is currently in a solid position against John McCain.
By averaging the results of both pollsters in several key states, we see that Obama is doing quite well:Ohio: Obama 46 McCain 42 (SUSA Obama 48-39, Ras McCain 45-44)
Iowa: Obama 45.5 McCain 40 (SUSA Obama 47-38, Ras Obama 44-42)
Pennsylvania: Obama 46.5 McCain 41.5 (SUSA Obama 48-40, Ras Obama 45-43)
Virginia: Obama 46.5 McCain 44.5 (SUSA Obama 49-42, Ras McCain 44-47)
California: Obama 50.5 McCain 39.5 (SUSA Obama 49-41, Ras Obama 52-38)
New Mexico: Obama 47 McCain 42.5 (SUSA Tied 44-44, Ras Obama 50-41)
So as we can see, by combining the most recent Survey USA and Rasmussen state-by-state polls, Obama is cruising in California, defending somewhat solid leads in Pennsylvania, New Mexico and Iowa, and holding on to smaller leads in Ohio and Virginia.
It is important to note that when one adds the Quinnipiac polls (OH: McCain 44-40, PA: Obama 46-40) to the mix, Obama still leads in both Ohio and Pennsylvania. In fact, his lead in Pennsylvania grows from a margin of 5 points to 5.33 points. However, his lead in Ohio shrinks from 4 points to just 1.33 points. Still, Obama hasn't visited Ohio since March and it's safe to say he'll make a few more campaign stops there between now and November.
As a sidenote, the very latest Quinnipiac poll once again reveals that Americans do not view Barack Obama as an elitist. In fact, they want to have a picnic with him!
...American voters would like to chat at a Memorial Day picnic with Illinois Sen. Barack Obama or Arizona Sen. John McCain rather than New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, according to a Quinnipiac University national poll released today. Results show:
35 percent of voters, including 35 percent of men and 34 percent of women, would most like to chat with Sen. Obama at a Memorial Day picnic;
33 percent of voters, including 41 percent of men and 26 percent of women, would rather chat with Sen. McCain;
27 percent of voters, including 20 percent of men and 33 percent of women, would most like to chat with Sen. Clinton.