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                            August 25, 2012What They Told Us: Reviewing Last Week’s Key Polls -- For The Week Ending August 25, 2012
Voters are clear that the economy is the most important issue in this year’s presidential campaign, but right now “legitimate rape” and a plan to reform Medicare seem to be dominating much of the media coverage.
Short- and long-term confidence in the nation’s economy continues to hover around lows for the year.  
Twenty-nine percent (29%) of homeowners believe the value of their home will go down over the next year. One-in-four (24%) think the value of their home will go down even further over the next five years. Fewer than half (47%) believe their home is worth more than what they still owe on the mortgage.  
Twenty-six percent (26%) say their home is worth less now than when they bought it.

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                            August 24, 2012Virginia Senate: Allen (R) 45%, Kaine (D) 45%
The race for Virginia’s open U.S. Senate seat remains one of the tightest of the year.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Virginia shows Republican George Allen and Democrat Tim Kaine each drawing 45% of the vote. Two percent (2%) prefer some other candidate, and eight percent (8%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The survey of 500 Likely Voters in Virginia was conducted on August 23, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 24, 201241% Say Situation in Afghanistan Will Get Worse in Near Future
The death toll of U.S. troops in Afghanistan rose above 2,000 earlier this month, more voters believe the situation there will get worse.  Still, voters tend to believe the United States and its allies are winning the War on Terror.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely U.S. Voters finds that 41% think the situation in Afghanistan will get worse in the next six months. Just 18% predict the situation will get better, while 31% say it will remain about the same. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August 20-21, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 24, 2012Virginia: Romney 47%, Obama 47%
Just days before Republicans make Mitt Romney’s candidacy official, he and President Obama are running dead even in the critical battleground state of Virginia.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Virginia shows Romney and Obama each with 47% support. Three percent (3%) prefer some other candidate in the race, and another three percent (3%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The survey of 500 Likely Voters in Virginia was conducted on August 23, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
August 24, 2012The Wrong Kind of Experience: Paul Ryan's Big Foreign Policy Credential By Joe Conason
Defending himself against the perception that he has no significant foreign policy experience, Republican vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan has drawn fresh attention to one of the most controversial acts of the past decade: the Bush administration's decision to invade Iraq before U.N. weapons inspections were completed.

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                            August 24, 2012Missouri: Obama 47%, Romney 46%
As the controversy over Republican Senate candidate Todd Akin’s “legitimate rape” comment continues, Mitt Romney’s lead in Missouri has vanished.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Missouri Voters finds President Obama with 47% support to Romney’s 46%. Three percent (3%) favor some other candidate in the race, and three percent (3%) more are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The survey of 500 Likely Voters in Missouri was conducted on August 22, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
August 24, 2012Romney, Obama Both Struggle to Connect By Scott Rasmussen
When Republicans formally nominate Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan next week, the race against President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will be officially underway. Yet while the two teams represent different ideological views, different upbringings, different faith backgrounds and different experiences, neither of them has yet inspired any confidence among voters.

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                            August 23, 201236% Say Economy Will Be Weaker A Year From Now
Short- and long-term confidence in the nation’s economy continues to hover around 2012 lows. 
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 32% of American Adults think the U.S. economy will be stronger a year from today, but slightly more (36%) believe it will be weaker in a year's time.  Seventeen percent (17%) think economic conditions in the country will stay about the same. Fifteen percent (15%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The national survey of 1,000 Adults nationwide was conducted on August 21-22, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 23, 201269% Think Most Politicians Break the Rules for Big Contributors
Money talks as far as most voters are concerned. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 69% of Likely U.S. Voters believe most politicians break the rules to help people who give them a lot of money. That’s up slightly from 63% four years ago. Just 13% disagree and don’t think most politicians are for sale. Eighteen percent (18%) are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August 18-19, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 23, 2012New Mexico Senate: Heinrich (D) 48%, Wilson (R) 41%
Democratic Congressman Martin Heinrich receives his highest level of support yet against former Congresswoman Heather Wilson in New Mexico’s U.S. Senate race.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of New Mexico Likely Voters shows Heinrich with 48% of the vote to Wilson’s 41%. Five percent (5%) prefer some other candidate, and seven percent (7%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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This New Mexico survey of 500 Likely Voters was conducted on August 21, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 23, 2012New Mexico Senate: Heinrich (D) 48%, Wilson (R) 41%
Democratic Congressman Martin Heinrich receives his highest level of support yet against former Congresswoman Heather Wilson in New Mexico’s U.S. Senate race.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of New Mexico Likely Voters shows Heinrich with 48% of the vote to Wilson’s 41%. Five percent (5%) prefer some other candidate, and seven percent (7%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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This New Mexico survey of 500 Likely Voters was conducted on August 21, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 23, 2012Missouri Senate: McCaskill (D) 48%, Akin (R) 38%
What a difference one TV interview can make. Embattled Democratic incumbent Claire McCaskill has now jumped to a 10-point lead over her Republican challenger, Congressman Todd Akin, in Missouri’s U.S. Senate race. Most Missouri Republicans want Akin to quit the race while most Missouri Democrats want him to stay.
The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in the Show Me State finds McCaskill earning 48% support to Akin’s 38%. Nine percent (9%) like some other candidate in the race, and five percent (5%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.) 
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The survey of 500 Likely Voters in Missouri was conducted on August 22, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
August 23, 2012Akin's Consistency Is GOP's Real Problem By Froma Harrop
The political convulsion over Missouri Republican Todd Akin's bizarre talk of "legitimate rape" highlights an issue that the GOP had buried in its campaign.
While the U.S. senatorial candidate's grasp of reproductive science is shockingly lacking -- he said real rape victims rarely get pregnant -- his position that abortions be banned with no exception for rape happens to be in the new Republican Party platform. It is a stance that most Americans, including most registered Republicans, disagree with and probably didn't know was an official party position. Now they do.
August 23, 2012Award-Winning Director Matthew Cohen Joins What America Thinks
Rasmussen Reports and Telco Productions are pleased to announce that Matthew Cohen has joined What America Thinks With Scott Rasmussen as director of the new nationally syndicated half-hour weekly television show scheduled to debut the weekend of September 8. Top stations already signed to feature the program include WCBS in New York and KCBS in Los Angeles.
August 23, 2012GM Goes From Bad to Worse Despite Obama Bailout by Michael Barone
Readers with long memories may recall that Charles E. Wilson, president of General Motors and nominee for secretary of defense, got into trouble when he told a Senate committee, "What is good for the country is good for General Motors, and what's good for General Motors is good for the country."

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                            August 23, 2012Connecticut: Obama 51%, Romney 43%
President Obama posts an eight-point lead over Mitt Romney in Rasmussen Reports’ first look at the presidential race in Connecticut.
A new telephone survey of Likely Connecticut Voters shows the president with 51% support, while Romney picks up 43% of the vote. Three percent (3%) prefer some other candidate in the race, and another three percent (3%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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This Connecticut survey of 500 Likely Voters was conducted on August 21, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.
August 22, 201229% Say U.S. Heading In Right Direction
For the second week in a row, 29% of Likely U.S. Voters say the country is heading in the right direction, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey taken the week ending Sunday, August 19.
From July 25 through December 11 of last year, voter confidence in the nation's current course resembled levels measured in the final months of the George W. Bush administration, remaining in the narrow range of 14% to 19%. That finding began climbing in early January of this year to a high of 34% in the second week of February and has been in the high 20s to low 30s in weekly tracking ever since.
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The national telephone survey of 3,500 Likely Voters was conducted by Rasmussen Reports August 13-19, 2012. The margin of sampling error for the survey is +/- 2 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 22, 201226% Say Their Home Worth Less Than When They Bought It
Most U.S. homeowners are confident they know the current value of their home and think it’s worth more than when they bought it. But one-in-four say their home is worth less now.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 82% of Americans who own a home are confident they know how much the house is worth in today’s market. That includes 43% who are Very Confident. Just 16% are not very or Not At All Confident that they know what their house is worth. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The national survey of 743 Adult Homeowners was conducted on August 19-20, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 22, 2012Connecticut Senate: McMahon (R) 49%, Murphy (D) 46%
Former wrestling executive Linda McMahon holds a narrow lead over Democratic Congressman Chris Murphy in Rasmussen Reports’ first look at Connecticut’s U.S. Senate race.
A new telephone survey of Likely Voters in Connecticut shows McMahon with 49% of the vote to Murphy’s 46%.  One percent (1%) prefer some other candidate, and five percent (5%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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This Connecticut survey of 500 Likely Voters was conducted on August 21, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 4.5 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.

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                            August 22, 201247% Fear Health Care Law More Than Ryan’s Medicare Reform Plan
Democrats hope to make inroads in the senior vote by raising concerns about Mitt Romney running mate Paul Ryan’s Medicare reform proposal, but most seniors are more fearful of President Obama’s health care law than they are of Ryan’s plan.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that when it comes to the future of Medicare, 47% of Likely U.S. Voters are scared more of the health care law than of Ryan’s proposal.  Forty-one percent (41%) are more scared of what Ryan has proposed. Twelve percent (12%) are undecided. (To see survey question wording, click here.)
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The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on August 20-21, 2012 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Fieldwork for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC. See methodology.