This gap will obviously shrink a little or even reverse after the RNC, but Obama is in a good place right now. We will see how much Hurricane Gustav affects the RNC too.
Polling Data
| Poll | Date | Sample | Obama (D) | McCain (R) | Spread |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RCP Average | 08/29 - 09/01 | -- | 49.2 | 42.8 | Obama +6.4 |
| Gallup Tracking | 08/30 - 09/01 | 2772 RV | 50 | 42 | Obama +8 |
| Rasmussen Tracking | 08/30 - 09/01 | 3000 LV | 51 | 45 | Obama +6 |
| Hotline/FD | 08/29 - 08/31 | RV | 48 | 39 | Obama +9 |
| CNN | 08/29 - 08/31 | 927 RV | 49 | 48 | Obama +1 |
| CBS News | 08/29 - 08/31 | 781 RV | 48 | 40 | Obama +8 |
| USA Today/Gallup* | 08/30 - 08/31 | 1835 LV | 50 | 43 | Obama +7 |
| CNN | 08/23 - 08/24 | 909 RV | 47 | 47 | Tie |
| Hotline/FD | 08/18 - 08/24 | 1022 RV | 44 | 40 | Obama +4 |
| USA Today/Gallup | 08/21 - 08/23 | 765 LV | 48 | 45 | Obama +3 |
| ABC News/Wash Post | 08/19 - 08/22 | LV | 49 | 45 | Obama +4 |
| FOX News | 08/19 - 08/20 | 900 RV | 42 | 39 | Obama +3 |
| CBS News/NY Times | 08/15 - 08/19 | 869 RV | 45 | 42 | Obama +3 |
| NBC News/Wall St. Jrnl | 08/15 - 08/18 | 1005 RV | 45 | 42 | Obama +3 |
| LA Times/Bloomberg | 08/15 - 08/18 | 1248 RV | 45 | 43 | Obama +2 |
| Reuters/Zogby | 08/14 - 08/16 | 1089 LV | 41 | 46 | McCain +5 |
| Quinnipiac | 08/12 - 08/17 | 1547 LV | 47 | 42 | Obama +5 |
| Battleground | 08/10 - 08/14 | 1000 LV | 46 | 47 | McCain +1 |
| IBD/TIPP | 08/04 - 08/09 | 856 RV | 43 | 38 | Obama +5 |
| Pew Research | 07/31 - 08/10 | 2414 RV | 46 | 43 | Obama +3 |
| CBS News | 07/31 - 08/05 | 906 RV | 45 | 39 | Obama +6 |
| Gallup Tracking | 08/01 - 08/03 | 2659 RV | 46 | 43 | Obama +3 |
| Rasmussen Tracking | 08/01 - 08/03 | 3000 LV | 46 | 47 | McCain +1 |
| Time | 07/31 - 08/04 | 808 LV | 46 | 41 | Obama +5 |
| AP-Ipsos | 07/31 - 08/04 | 833 RV | 48 | 42 | Obama +6 |
| CNN | 07/27 - 07/29 | 914 RV | 51 | 44 | Obama +7 |
| USA Today/Gallup | 07/25 - 07/27 | 791 LV | 45 | 49 | McCain +4 |
| Pew Research | 07/23 - 07/27 | 1241 RV | 47 | 42 | Obama +5 |
| Democracy Corps (D) | 07/21 - 07/24 | 1004 LV | 50 | 45 | Obama +5 |
| FOX News | 07/22 - 07/23 | 900 RV | 41 | 40 | Obama +1 |
| NBC News/Wall St. Jrnl | 07/18 - 07/21 | 1003 RV | 47 | 41 | Obama +6 |
| Gallup | 07/13 - 07/15 | 2638 RV | 47 | 44 | Obama +3 |
| CBS News/NY Times | 07/07 - 07/14 | 1462 RV | 45 | 39 | Obama +6 |
| Rasmussen | 07/11 - 07/13 | 3000 LV | 47 | 46 | Obama +1 |
| ABC News/Wash Post | 07/10 - 07/13 | LV | 49 | 46 | Obama +3 |
| Reuters/Zogby | 07/09 - 07/13 | 1039 LV | 47 | 40 | Obama +7 |
| Quinnipiac | 07/08 - 07/13 | 1725 LV | 50 | 41 | Obama +9 |
| IBD/TIPP | 07/07 - 07/11 | 854 RV | 40 | 37 | Obama +3 |
| Newsweek | 07/09 - 07/10 | 1037 RV | 44 | 41 | Obama +3 |
| Gallup | 06/30 - 07/02 | 2641 RV | 47 | 43 | Obama +4 |
| Rasmussen | 06/29 - 07/01 | 3000 LV | 49 | 44 | Obama +5 |
| CNN | 06/26 - 06/29 | 906 RV | 50 | 45 | Obama +5 |
| McLaughlin (R) | 06/26 - 06/29 | 1000 LV | 46 | 38 | Obama +8 |
| Pew Research | 06/18 - 06/29 | 1574 RV | 48 | 40 | Obama +8 |
| Democracy Corps (D) | 06/22 - 06/25 | 2000 LV | 49 | 45 | Obama +4 |
| Time | 06/19 - 06/25 | 805 RV | 47 | 43 | Obama +4 |
| LA Times/Bloomberg | 06/19 - 06/23 | 1115 RV | 49 | 37 | Obama +12 |
| Franklin & Marshall | 06/16 - 06/22 | 1501 RV | 42 | 36 | Obama +6 |
| Newsweek | 06/18 - 06/19 | 896 RV | 51 | 36 | Obama +15 |
| FOX News | 06/17 - 06/18 | 900 RV | 45 | 41 | Obama +4 |
| USA Today/Gallup | 06/15 - 06/19 | 1310 LV | 50 | 44 | Obama +6 |
We had two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high-powered blotter acid, a salt shaker half full of cocaine, a whole galaxy of multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers…Also a quart of tequila, a quart of rum, a case of beer, a pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls. The only thing that really worried me was the ether. There is nothing in the world more helpless and irresponsible and depraved than a man in the depths of an ether binge. –Raoul Duke
It is hard to shed anything but crocodile tears over White House speechwriter Patrick Buchanan's tragic analysis of the Nixon debacle. "It's like Sisyphus," he said. "We rolled the rock all the way up the mountain...and it rolled right back down on us...." Neither Sisyphus nor the commander of the Light Brigade nor Pat Buchanan had the time or any real inclination to question what they were doing...a martyr, to the bitter end, to a "flawed" cause and a narrow, atavistic concept of conservative politics that has done more damage to itself and the country in less than six years than its liberal enemies could have done in two or three decades. -Hunter S. Thompson
