Public: Guiliani has best chance of defeating Clinton

Gallup News Service ^ | 11/2/07 | Joseph Carroll

[jamese777]

PRINCETON, NJ -- The vast majority of Americans say former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has an excellent or good chance both of being elected president and of defeating Hillary Clinton in the November 2008 general election if Clinton is the Democratic presidential candidate. None of the other leading Republican candidates comes close to Giuliani on either measure. Americans give Giuliani, Arizona Sen. John McCain, and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney slightly better chances of “being elected president” than of “defeating Hillary Clinton.”

Giuliani also has an advantage in perceived electability over the rest of the Republican field in a series of head-to-head electability comparisons against McCain, Romney, and former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson. Giuliani has at least a 40-point electability advantage in each of these comparisons.

Democrats, independents, and Republicans all rate Giuliani as the GOP’s best bet in 2008.

Electability of Republican Candidates

The Oct. 25-28, 2007, Gallup Panel survey asked Americans two questions about the chances of six Republican candidates winning the presidency in November 2008. Half of the respondents were asked about the candidates' chances "of being elected president in November 2008." The other half were asked about the candidates' chances of "defeating Hillary Clinton for president in November 2008 if she is the Democratic candidate."

Giuliani is the only candidate that a majority of Americans say has an excellent or good chance of “being elected president” in 2008. McCain (47%) and Romney (45%) fall just below the majority level on this measure. Only 31% of Americans view Thompson, who has consistently placed second in national Republican nomination preference polls, as having an excellent or good chance of being elected. The public does not give dark-horse candidates Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul good odds.

[Perdogg]

popcorn please.

[goldstategop]

Rudy will carry New York? Yeah, right.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[BGHater]

Yeah, the Fabianist win again.

[Petronski]

The media creates its own reality, hammers it into the public consciousness, then polls to say “See, you agree!”

[SilvieWaldorfMD]

Did you say “Fabio”? ;- 0

[indylindy]

Okie doke, they can do it without me. I really do not believe this to be the truth.

Actually, I believe he will end up being the only one who cannot beat Hillary.

Pubbies win when they stay conservative, it is that conservatism and rock hard principle that gives the voter faith.

Th idea that seems to be tootin’ round this time is liberal female against liberal male globalist.

Best chance to win? Neither one. The people have lost the faith in their government.

[goldstategop]

Much of the polls are a reflection the public's desire to leave the Bush years behind. They want someone who is the opposite of Bush in both approach and style. Considering the Vice President isn't running, its just as well.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Thud]

This is a poll of public perception, not of voter intentions, and so merits less weight than Giuliani's partisans will make of it. I support him but am not rabid about it.

What it does say is that any kind of foreign crisis will cause voter support of Giuliani to soar.

[Egon]

Translation: if we can’t have Hillary, please nominate the man most Left on the GOP ticket. Thank you!

[goldstategop]

We've 12 months to go. A year is a long time but I suspect the presidential nomination in both parties may be wrapped up by February.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[EternalVigilance]

The media creates its own reality, hammers it into the public consciousness, then polls to say “See, you agree!”

A very pithy, and accurate, portrayal of the reality of the situation.

[Perdogg]

Eventhough I will vote for any Republican nominee against Hillary, and I urge others to do so, it is true that when a moderate/Liberal Republican goes up against a moderate/liberal democrat, the moderate/liberal democrat always wins (e.g 1948, 1976,1992, and 1996).

[goldstategop]

It does. The GOP should ignore the MSM polls. The truth is one can't outliberal a liberal. The Lefties will still vote for Hillary. The only way to bring conservatives out to vote is nominate a conservative candidate.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[savedbygrace]

The sample was 1,000 ADULTS, not likely voters, and only included 310 Republicans.

Almost totally worthless poll, IMO.

[goldstategop]

Last month the Tories in Ontario got walloped after running a Liberal Lite campaign. John Tory, the leader lost his Don Valley West riding despite buttering up to the Gay Lobby.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Howie66]

The only people that I know that “support” Rudy are those that are clueless about his stance on issues.

[Thombo2]

Where’s Tom Tancredo?Wouldn’t you know it?The one candidate i actually sent money too isn’t even in the running.Bottom line-when it comes right down to it,i’ll vote for Rudy.

[goldstategop]

The MSM must have done its hardest to poll Rockefeller Republicans. In what phone booth did they find them?

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[chae]

I totally agree. The pro-life people will stay at home. Guiliani say he’ll support constructionist judges, but I don’t know that I believe it. That’s like saying I believe in x,y, and z, but I’ll appoint someone who doesn’t and can concievably make x,y, and z illegal.
Sorry, that doesn’t pass the smell test for me. I think the best ticket for the republicans would be a Romney/Huckabee ticket or Romney/Hunter, or Huckabee/Hunter.

[tear gas]

The only people that I know that “support” Rudy are those that are clueless about his stance on issues.

Stance? I assume Rudy favors the same wide stance touted by Larry Craig.

[Fred]

Loyal to Kerik, Giuliani Missed Warning Signs

[EternalVigilance]

Ignorance is a dangerous thing.

[EternalVigilance]

Romney is Giuliani. He’s just lying about it.

[goldstategop]

ROFL! Rudy at least wins on executive experience. Hillary has never been responsible for managing a payroll larger than her own office.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[EternalVigilance]

Huckabee is Jimmy Carter with an “R” by his name.

[EternalVigilance]

Hillary has never been responsible for managing a payroll larger than her own office.

She's been running the world in her own mind for decades.

[goldstategop]

He's Bill Clinton without the sex scandals and that eager to please y'all demeanor.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Ah yeah, the media keeps fattening up Rudy like Thanksgiving turkey - only to carve him up the minute after he wins the primaries.

Rudy's nominated = 3rd party

[goldstategop]

The MSM will NEVER turn on Hillary or the Democrats.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[teenyelliott]

It's the lesser of two evils.

Of course I'd rather our nominee not be Guliani, but if it is, no way am I going to let Hillary (or any dem), benefit by my sitting out the election.

[Subotai]

No Giuliani does not have the best chance to defeat Hillary.

Only a Republican who is the most faithful to conservatism can defeat Hillary. When they stray from Conservatism they will lose.

The media is trying to get this pro abortion liberal Giuliani to be our candidate by saying he is the only one that has a shot against the “boogeyman” that is Hillary. In essence they are trying to scare the conservative out of us.

[penowa]

"The vast majority of Americans say former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has an excellent or good chance both of being elected president and of defeating Hillary Clinton in the November 2008 general election if Clinton is the Democratic presidential candidate."

I wonder who told them that? I love the way the MSM puts out their "facts," and then polls to see if the sheeple have received the message and can parrot it back to them.

[Howie66]

“Ignorance is a dangerous thing.”

Members of DU, MoveOn.org and Code Pink are shining examples of that.

[garyhope]

Sorry, I like Rudy. I saw him on Glen Beck and I think he speaks well extemporaneously, clearly and pragmatically.

No one is perfect and some compromise is necessary to select the most electable Republican.

The most vital and salient issues are survival and triumpth over Islam and Islamofascism before they nuke us. Retaking the country and media from the leftist, PC baloney culture and their political and media/cultural handmaidens, sycophants and 5th columnists. All of them want us all dead or subservient.

Anything is better than Hillary or any so called Democrats. They must be defeated.

Hillary and the Democrats are the end of the world, America and Western civilization.

[freespirited]

Last night CSPAN showed pollster Peter Hart conducting a focus group with 12 Virginia voters, all Republican.

When Hart asked about specific candidates, people seemed most uncomfortable with Romney because of his religion. I think four said outright they would not vote for him. Several (I forget exactly how many) were bothered by Rudy being pro-choice.

Toward the end, Hart asked about specific pairings. When asked who they would vote for in a Romney-Clinton race, all 12 said Romney, including those who had stated only minutes before that they would not vote for him. Same thing with those bothered by Rudy’s stand on abortion. All 12 said they would vote for Rudy. There seemed to be consensus that these things are bad but Democrats are worse. None of them said they would stay home.

Of course, this was not a scientific survey. I did see a Gallup poll that inquired about staying home if the GOP candidate is not acceptable. Depending on the candidate, 9-11% said they would stay home. But the lowest figure (9%) was for Giuliani and the highest figure (11%) was for Romney.

I did not expect what I saw last night or the Gallup results, but perhaps Republicans hate Hillary more than we realize.

[tear gas]

Sorry, I like Rudy. I saw him on Glen Beck and I think he speaks well extemporaneously, clearly and pragmatically.

You ain't seen Rudy til you've seen him all gussied up!

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

No chance and either will hurt Americans!

[freespirited]

Rudy at least wins on executive experience. Hillary has never been responsible for managing a payroll larger than her own office.

Methinks you give her too much credit. Rudy had to figure out how to keep the revenue coming in to meet that payroll. Hillary gets a big chunk of money from your pocket. As a result she never has to worry about where the funds for her staff will come from.

[W04Man]

I'm voting for....

THE MAN WITH PRINCIPLES AND NOTHING BUT THE FACTS!

FRED VETS, SIGN UP TODAY AT:

[hiredhand]

Not to "get into it" with anybody....because I've been strongly criticized for this already. But I'll vote for my neighbor's dog before I vote for Rudy Guiliani. I won't vote for him (or any other RINO), but I won't vote for Hillary either. People such as myself will cause enough of an imbalance to toss the election her (Hillary's) way.

I've been warning people of this for months. But the prevailing attitude is that "anybody else" is better than Hillary, and that my attitude is everything from dangerous to seditious. We don't believe this though, even though we won't stoop to voting for Hillary.

A year is a fairly long time, and things can change though. We'll just have to see what pans out.

[hiredhand]

If Rudy is nominated, on that day the RNC will have forfeited the election to their competitor. They should pay attention to those trying to tell them this instead of sticking their heads in holes and ignoring everything going on around them. The RNC lives in a dream world.

[italianquaker]

You might be right but they screwed Pombo in 2006, so anything can and will happen

[ASA Vet]

We still have lots of those RinoRudy Bots here on FR.
But many fewer than before Feb.

[captnorb]

You got that right.

[Howie66]

“Attrition” can be a good thing! :-)

[Fishrrman]

Eventhough I will vote for any Republican nominee against Hillary, and I urge others to do so, it is true that when a moderate/Liberal Republican goes up against a moderate/liberal democrat, the moderate/liberal democrat always wins (e.g 1948, 1976,1992, and 1996).

1968: Nixon v. Humphrey
1972: Nixon v. McGovern
1988: G. Bush (the elder) v. Dukakis

Nixon - who presided over the creation of the EPA and who instituted wage and price controls, could _hardly_ be called a conservative president. He _may_ have been conservative in his younger days, but by the time he reached the oval office, he was the epitome of a "moderate Republican".

And how "conservative" was "read my lips" George the 1st?

Your theory does not hold water.

- John

[hiredhand]

For over four years our SOLE communication with the GOP was “SECURE THE BORDERS!”. For four years, they sent us solicitations for donations, and called us. Our response never changed.

This culminated with that amnesty debacle. At this, we jammed legislative switchboards in D.C., flooded e-mail systems, and ran their fax machines out of paper. We pressured enough Senators to stop the bill from passing.

But what was the response? The response was the President’s scorching rebuttal to us a day later. Did you see it? I was amazed. I felt like he was talking to me personally! He was obviously angry at us! We logically thought that since we had managed to exert enough pressure, that he would be the man we voted for and do what was voiced by us.

But instead, a few days later he went to our enemy, Harry Reid and asked him to resurrect the bill. THIS is what split the GOP.

The reason this is dangerous is because there is now a large base of now former GOP voters who wouldn’t vote for “Rudy McRomney” if it meant life or death. We’re just some of those people. We’re going to vote for Duncan Hunter, Tom Tancredo, Fred Thompson, or Ron Paul. But collectively, we’ll have no strength because these men are all some very good picks! They will divide our vote! Some are better than others, but they’re all preferred over the current GOP front runners, and certainly the DNC picks.

But if the GOP doesn’t nominate somebody like Duncan Hunter or one of those mentioned above, this election is OVER. We’ll be too divided as a conservative base to have any effect in the outcome. The result will be that Hillary Rodham Clinton will become the 44the President of the United States of America.

We won’t vote for a “second best” again. We won’t vote for a “Rudy McRomney” just to keep Hillary from winning the Presidency. But there are masses of cowards out there who will support the GOP come hell or high water, and they will. Of course they’ll blame people like us for voting for a good man such as Duncan Hunter as Hillary is being sworn into office and we’re all lamenting it. But it won’t change the fact that we did what was right, and correct and they did NOT.

We don't fear this, although we're not looking forward to it either. But those who vote for second best only to prevent Hillary from winning the election are driven by fear and deserve nothing of what they hope for. Theirs will be a "cowards reward". We're not driven by fear, nor do we fear those who will predictably bring what will come.

[TLI]

The vast majority of Americans say former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani has an excellent or good chance both of being elected president and of defeating Hillary Clinton in the November 2008 general election if Clinton is the Democratic presidential candidate.

Right. Ahhh, yea.

Perhaps there are two Rudys? `Cause the Rudy I know about has a few itsy-bitsy flaws that just MAYBE could be a problem...

First there is the protector of our constitutional rights Rudy,


Second, there is the "Conservative Values" Rudy,


Third, there is the "Family Values" Rudy


Then of course there is the "Safe for Republicans Rudy"

But we all know that the fair and balanced opponent from across the isle would NEVER exploit a couple of minor character flaws, she will campaign strictly on the issues, right?




Or, could it be that the power mad, crazed nutjob will gleefully chew up little roooty-toot and spit him out like old bubblegum?

[airborne]

The same public who doesn’t know that Rudy is pro abortion?

Sheeple.