As a supporter in principle of the benefiits of checks and balances in a two party system I have been distressed by the direction the Republican Party is heading. Their authoritarian ideas and denial of science along with any objective facts which contradict their ideology is rapidly turning them into a regional party of the deep south and Mormon belt. Sarah Palin is one of the worst examples of the anti-intellectualism which is increasingly dominating the conservative movements yet many Republicans think she would make a plausible 2012 presidential candidate. It is far too early for polls to be predictive with regards to the 2012 election, but data from Public Policy Polling does show that Palin has a tremendous amount of ground to make up.
The poll shows that in a hypothetical match up between Barack Obama and Sarah Palin, Obama would have the largest blow out since Richard Nixon’s victory over George McGovern. Obama wins by 55 percent to 35 percent in the match up. He does trail Palin by 66 percent to 17 percent among Republicans, but Obama only received the votes of 9 percent of Republicans in 2008. (This would not include the votes of many former Republicans who stopped identifying with the Republicans before the 2008 election).
The poll also shows that only 3 percent of Democrats are undecided in supporting Obama while 18 percent of Republicans are, showing further doubt about Palin among Republicans. Overall only 41 percent of Americans have a favorable view of Palin. The pollsters conclude:
“It’s impossible to say what twists and turns the American political landscape will see between now and 2012,” said Dean Debnam, President of Public Policy Polling. “What is clear is that four months ago John McCain lost to Barack Obama by seven points nationally, and at this point in time Sarah Palin trails Obama by a much greater 20 point margin. Obama would easily win more than 400 electoral votes in a contest against Palin at this point in time.”
