Surprise! Poll Shows Unease With Obama’s Skimpy Resume

Photo credits: AP

It’s hard to figure out why the good old boys network among DNC members, the Obama team, and the media didn’t notice in the Democratic primary that despite the excitement about change stirred up by Obama, the children’s latest Pied Piper, his skimpy resume might pose a problem in the general election.

In reporting the findings of the recent WashingtonPost/ABC News poll, Gary Langer at ABC News highlights this bombshell:

“Obama, more broadly, also faces significant unease with his resume, with just half of Americans, 50 percent, saying he's experienced enough to serve as president. Forty-six percent think that's not so, a large number to lose on the basic question of qualifications.”

I scanned Langer’s piece shortly after reading Anne Kornblut’s post at the Trail (WashingtonPost) in which she described how ill-behaved Obama supporters were at a recent Michigan rally. First Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm was booed when she mentioned Sen. Clinton, the candidate she backed for the Democratic presidential nomination. Next, the Obamaphiles booed Al Gore when he suggested that Democrats treat John McCain, the Republican candidate with respect.

It’s behavior like this by Obamaphiles that has no doubt contributed to their leader’s ongoing challenges predicted in the coming general election by the WashingtonPost/ABC News poll. (Keep in mind, that Barack Obama positioned himself in the primary as the great unifier while repeatedly labeling Hillary Clinton as polarizing and divisive.)

But let’s go back to the beginning of Langer’s article at ABC News on those poll results; Langer leads off with these observations:

“The latest ABC News/Washington Post poll underscores the conundrum of the 2008 presidential election: If everything is so good for Barack Obama, why isn't everything so good for Barack Obama?

“Disapproval of George W. Bush has reached a record high for any president in modern polls, a record number of Americans say the country is on the wrong track, Democrats hold a significant advantage in partisan affiliation and Obama leads John McCain on a range of issues and personal attributes, as well as in sheer enthusiasm.

Click here for a PDF with charts and full questionnaire.

“Yet Obama has less of a head-to-head advantage against McCain than these views would imply.

“Among all Americans, Obama leads by a fairly narrow 6 points; among those most likely to vote -- an estimate that it's admittedly early to make -- the two are locked in a dead heat.

“In generic preference in local congressional elections, by contrast, the Democrats lead the Republicans by 15 points, a wide 52-37 percent, among all adults.

“Obama's advantage vs. McCain is about the same as in an ABC/Post poll last month -- no bounce from Obama's victory in the long-fought Democratic nomination campaign. "

Now about that booing by Obamaphiles in Michigan, guess what?

“No Post-Clinton Bounce for Obama.

“One of the challenges for Obama in terms of likely voters is the fact that his support relies heavily on young adults, whose turnout on Election Day is far less reliable than their elders'.

“He leads McCain by more than a 2-1 margin among Americans under 30; that shifts to a tie among middle-aged adults, and a McCain advantage among seniors.

“Obama, more broadly, also faces significant unease with his resume, with just half of Americans, 50 percent, saying he's experienced enough to serve as president. Forty-six percent think that's not so, a large number to lose on the basic question of qualifications.

“Also, in the two most reliable swing voter groups in presidential elections, Obama and McCain run evenly among independents, and McCain leads by 14 points among white Catholics. (In a shift, McCain's doing better this month than last among women, particularly married white women, while Obama's doing better among men.)

“Obama has work to do in his base, as well: Among Democrats who supported Hillary Clinton for president, about one in four, 24 percent, prefer McCain over Obama, and 13 percent pick someone else or say they wouldn't vote. Those are essentially unchanged from an ABC/Post poll last month, before Clinton suspended her campaign and offered Obama a fulsome endorsement.”

To read more, go here.