Casey’s Approval Rating Jumps; GOP 2012 Senate Picture Still Complicated

By Keegan Gibson, Managing Editor

Senator Bob Casey got some good news this morning, as the new Quinnipiac poll showed a 10 point net jump in his approval ratings.

44 percent of PA voters approve of Casey’s job performance, compared to 24 percent who disapprove. Quinnipiac’s December poll showed Casey with relatively more meager approval numbers of 39 – 29 percent.

Today’s Quinnipiac poll also showed President Obama’s PA approval rating back above 50 percent, his highest approval since July 2009.

By a 46 – 28 percent margin, Pennsylvania voters say Casey deserves to be re-elected. Casey bests a generic Republican nominee 45 – 35 percent.

Casey also aced the key ‘Goldilocks’ category. Asked if Casey was too liberal, too conservative or just right, 46 percent of respondents said he was just right. Only 22 percent sad he was too liberal.

These are all good numbers for Casey. His only apparent weak spot is the fact that 31 percent of poll respondents didn’t know enough about him to form an opinion. That gives the GOP the opportunity to define Casey to an extent greater than the typical statewide elected official (who is also the son of a former Governor).

Today’s poll would seem to bolster one of Republicans’ strongest attacks in 2010: the Obama comparison. It showed that a full 51 percent of voters believe that Casey “generally shares the views of Barack Obama on major issues.” However, with the President actually on the ballot in 2012, it is unclear whether such a line of attack would help or hurt Casey.

And Republicans have their own name ID problems in this race. Not one of the prospective GOP candidates has name ID over 26 percent, according to a January survey by PPP.

Indeed, referring to “prospective GOP candidates” may be generous, as few major Republican contenders have expressed public interest in the race.

From February 8 – 14, Quinnipiac University surveyed 1,366 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.7 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones.

4 Responses

  1. I do have a couple of crank flhtlaighss and radio but I’m looking for something you don’t have to crank every 1/2 hour. The problem is the amount of money you need to put in up front to get a good system going.After a few years the batteries in those crank units start going bad, as do the batteries in the solar units. And cranking does get boring very fast. Still, folks without other light will deal with that, you will deal with a lot if the grid is down for some time. Been there, done that. Wait a minute. We spend a lot of time in one location anymore, often in front of a computer. What if every few minutes you just reached over to pull a handle down to spin the flywheel up again while you are reading something?I’m not saying it would run your computer, but it would run all the LED lights you would want, and maybe your monitor.As long as the grid works I’m not much worried about any of it, I just think that it’s flawed logic to assume that the grid will always be there. And I’m proven right almost everyday. One good solar panel like I have, and a deep cycle battery and a system you can peddle while computing would keep you on the internet when many can’t even get on it. Assuming the internet was even working, in that case you can make power to read a deep book or watch a movie. Assuming that it all went down, there is one thing that won’t go down. Ham radio, in the background there are many ham radio operators and systems that don’t depend on anything but themselves. They have the systems they need to make the power to talk to the rest of the world. Interesting.

  2. I agree with Ron Paul on most issues. I like his ruetrn to constitution focus and limited government. I like his economic arguments generally. The one thing that I’m finding hard to swallow are portions of his international policy. To bring back troops from Afghanistan after over 10 years of trying to stabilize the country with mixed results, and to significantly reduce our troop presence in Germany is one thing. Clearly Afghanistan is as good as that backward country is going to get, and Europe is no longer threatened by the Soviet Union (though Russia isn’t necessarily benign). However, to bring back troops from South Korea and Japan, as well as disengage almost totally (militarily) from the rest of the world is almost insane. America shouldn’t look for fights, but also shouldn’t abandon our allies and friends around the world to the influence of increasingly aggressive regimes. Our troop presence in South Korea is a show of solidarity with one of our closest allies in the world against a tyrannical regime to their north (a nation which, by the way, we are technically still at war with). Our troop presence in Japan is a protection force to supplement an inadequate self defense force (Japan cannot constitutionally possess a force capable of war limited by article 9 of their constitution). With China aggressively modernizing it’s military and rapidly expanding it’s Navy, a Japan wary of these developments welcomes such protection, and having a physical military presence is a tangible symbol of our commitment. I find myself liking Obama’s foreign policies, but hating his domestic/economic policies, loving Ron Paul’s domestic/economic policies and mixed on his foreign policies. I admire Ron Paul sticking to his guns , but isn’t foreign policy more complicated than a one size fits all solution? Looking forward to anyone trying to convince an undecided, independent voter.

  3. Just want to say your article is as surprising. The clarity for your submit is simply spectacular and that i could think you’re knowledgeable on this subject. Fine with your permission let me to take hold of your feed to stay up to date with approaching post. Thank you 1,000,000 and please carry on the enjoyable work.

  4. I think Casey is a good man, but if he votes against the GOP budget proposal, I’m going to vote against him. If he votes for Obama’s insane budget with tax increases and even more spending, I won’t vote for Casey.

    A special grievance of mine is the PHA in Philly where the housing is a blighted taxpayer funded wreck in my neighborhood, full of drugs and criminals, and PHA is in chaos, subjected to several federal agency investigations and a grand jury. But Obama’s budget increases funding for HUD and thus for PHA, throwing good money after bad.

    This is the kind of lemming like thinking that will get a few more Democrats “shellacked” in the next election.

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  • Will tonight's U.S. Senate debate affect your decision?


    • No. I've already decided on how to cast my vote. (81%)
    • Yes. Anxious to hear from both candidates (19%)

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