Yesterday it was reported that John McCain was the presidential candidate the majority of Americans would prefer in White House if a crisis were to occur. Reports today show John McCain holds a higher favorable rating than Clinton or Obama, as well.
The Trend.
Yesterday's report here at Wake up America, showed that 55 percent of Americans preferred John McCain over Hillary Clinton to be the person in the White House answering the "red phone" in a time of crisis, according to Zogby International, who has been tracking public opinion since 1984.
That number raised a percentage point to 56 percent, when the question came down to John McCain or Barack Obama.
Ten days before that, Rasmussen Reports, who is run by Scott Rasmussen, an independent pollster for more than a decade, showed McCain favored by 42 percent of Americans in the same "red phone" situation.
Continuing the trend, both Zogby and Rasmussen also released reports showing John McCain favored in a matchup between him, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.
According to Rasmussen, John McCain leads both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama by identical 46 percent to 40 percent margins in Ohio, and that in Michigan and Pennsylvania, opinion has also shifted slightly in McCain’s direction.
Zogby's report was geared toward the general election and showed that McCain has moved ahead of both of his potential Democratic Party rivals in a national general election test.
McCain would defeat Hillary Clinton of New York by six points and Barack Obama of Illinois by 5 points, the survey shows.
The Trend Continues.
Gallup, who has studied human nature and behavior for more than 70 years, released their new report today, and it shows that John McCain's 67 percent favorable rating is the "highest of any of the three major candidates running for president."
John McCain's current favorable rating shows a 26 points gain since last summer, including an 11-point increase since March 4, 2008 when he won enough delegates to ensure the Republican nomination for presidency.
Barack Obama receives the second highest favorable rating of the three candidates at 62 percent and Hillary Clinton is at the bottom with 53 percent .
Interestingly, according to Gallup, the reason for McCain and Obama's higher favorable ratings is because they cross-appeal to Americans who identify with the "other" party.
That cross appeal works in McCain's favor among Democrats, which show that 52 percent of Democrats and independents who lean Democratic, give John McCain a favorable rating, which Gallup describes as an "extraordinarily high number".
For Obama the number of Republicans or Republican leaners that give him a favorable rating, sits at 39 percent and for Clinton that number is only 20 percent.
Barack Obama is closer to John McCain in favorable ratings, as well as having the cross appeal that Gallup mentioned, but his recent trouble in distancing himself from some controversial comments from his Pastor of 20 years, Jeremiah Wright, has already started costing him in favorable ratings as was shown yesterday in another Rasmussen report, dealing with that specific topic.
With all this said, polls are a guide, a reference, but they are not an exact science, nor are they 100 percent correct, but when different polling organizations show a consistent trend, it gives people a general idea of what the public opinion is on any given topic.
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