What if they held a Republican Primary contest and the front-runners didn’t show up? Or what if voters look for anybody but the front-runner? How do primary voters view the dark horses who are possible contenders for the party’s 2012 presidential nomination?
In the past few days Mike Huckabee and Donald Trump have both removed their names from consideration for the 2012 GOP Presidential nomination.
The International Monetary Fund has now projected that China will surpass the United States as the world's number one economy by 2016, and Americans overwhelmingly believe China represents a bigger threat to America economically than militarily these days.
Republican primary voters at this early stage of the game now give billionaire developer Donald Trump the edge over presumptive favorites Mitt Romney and Mike Huckabee in the race to be the GOP’s presidential nominee in 2012.
The United States has military defense treaties with over 50 other nations. In addition to surveys about countries regularly in the news, Rasmussen Reports has been periodically asking Americans how they feel about defending some of these treaty countries if they are attacked. On the most recent list of nine countries, American Adults don’t feel strongly about defending any of them.
Voters overwhelmingly believe that taxpayers are not getting a good return on what they spend on public education, and just one-in-three voters think spending more will make a difference.
Most voters favor repeal of the national health care law, but they’re more narrowly divided when asked whether the federal government should set health care standards for the entire country.
Most voters continue to believe U.S. society is fair and decent, but far fewer feel President Obama agrees with them.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Attorney General Eric Holder remain two of the top players in the Obama administration, and most voters continue not to like them or not know who they are.
With a growing shortage of doctors projected for the years ahead, a number of states are considering or have already passed legislation that allows nurse practitioners to step in for physicians in routine cases. Most voters think that’s a good idea.
Mark Twain once said, “It could probably be shown by facts and figures that there is no distinctly native American criminal class except Congress.” A large number of Americans share that skepticism.
Most voters still favor repeal of the national health care law and believe it will drive up the federal deficit even as President Obama and Congress are stepping up the debate on how to cut the government’s massive debt.
It was a week for looking back, but when Americans did look ahead, they didn’t like much of what they saw.
Most voters now expect the U.S. military’s role in Libya to last beyond this year.
Support for continuing U.S. military operations in Libya is holding steady from two weeks ago after a drop-off in support from just after the mission began. But voters remain almost evenly divided over U.S. military involvement in the Libyan political crisis.
Nearly two-thirds of voters still believe border control should be the top priority in the fight against illegal immigration, but they also continue to support a welcoming immigration policy.
In an effort to enhance online security and privacy, the Obama administration has proposed Americans obtain a single ID for all Internet sales and banking activity. But a new Rasmussen Reports survey finds most Americans want nothing to do with such an ID if the government is the one to issue it and hold the information.
A year ago today, an explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig marked the beginning of the most devastating oil spill ever in the Gulf of Mexico. Most voters now think the cleanup from that spill has been fairly successful and appear less concerned about the long-term effect on the environment. But voters still give low grades to both the federal government and the companies responsible for their response to the spill.
Most voters still blame the nation's economic problems on the George W. Bush years, but they also continue to trust their own economic judgment more than that of President Obama.
While voters are evenly divided over the quality of President Obama’s leadership, more voters view his leadership style as being too cooperative.
