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In spite of attacks, public’s initial response to Rep. Ryan is favorable

Aug 14, 2012

By Dave Andrusko

The first interview the new pro-life team of Mitt Romney and Rep. Paul Ryan gave was with “60 Minutes.”

No sooner had the two words “Paul Ryan” come from Mitt Romney’s lips than the instant cliché emerged: the battle was on to “define” the 42-year-old congressman from Wisconsin and, by extension, Mr. Romney. Well, yes, sort of.

Defining and caricaturing out of existence are two entirely different actions. In theory, the mainstream media should objectively assess Rep. Ryan’s strengths and weaknesses—defining. In practice, they already are carrying water for the Obama re-election team–caricaturing.

No matter, such has it always been, such will it always be: the records and positions of pro-lifers like Romney and Ryan will always be distorted beyond recognition. We are confident that the public will grow to like and appreciate the team as much as pro-lifers do. Since Ryan is the newest member, obviously the media spotlight is on him.

What do the early numbers tell us? Well, as background, keep in mind that Gallup’s latest three-day “rolling average” has President Obama’s approval figure at 45%. His disapproval number is 49%. THAT explains a lot.

Last week we talked about a weighted—biased—Pew Poll. Unlike Gallup, for example, Pew had Obama’s favorable numbers at 50% versus 45% unfavorable. But….

“Though there are still more than three months to go before the election, Obama’s current favorability ratings compare poorly with the final pre-election ratings for previous Democratic candidates. Not since Michael Dukakis in 1988 has a Democratic candidate gone into the election with favorability ratings as low as Obama’s are today.”

Having said that, what are the first impressions of Rep. Ryan? Even the Washington Post yesterday conceded Ryan’s numbers had jumped once he was announced as the VP and that the biggest improvement was among the much-coveted Independent vote.

Rasmussen’s numbers today for Ryan ”after the first blush of national media exposure following Mitt Romney’s selection of him as his vice presidential running mate” are much more favorable.

“The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 50% of Likely U.S. Voters now have a favorable opinion of Ryan, while 32% view him unfavorably. This includes 29% with a Very Favorable view of Romney’s vice presidential pick and 13% with a Very Unfavorable one.  Only 13% are now unfamiliar with Ryan, and five percent (5%) are not sure about him.”

Rasmussen also surveyed in the swing state of Ohio. Not only did a majority have a favorable opinion of Ryan (51% to 39% unfavorable), 40% told Rasmussen they were now more likely to vote for Romney, versus 32% who said they were less likely.

But, of course, the attacks have just begun. In keeping with NRL News Today policy of not repeating vicious, unsubstantiated attack ads (often thinly disguised as news stories), the assaults on Ryan may pale in comparison to what is surfacing from the ooze against Romney.

Having watched politics intensely since 1964, I thought I had seen just about everything. Not so. Obama’s re-election team outdoes itself on an almost daily basis, finding new depths to which it will happily sink.

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Categories: Mitt Romney