Shocker! Ron Paul Voters Suspected of Stuffing Straw Poll Ballot Box

Really, what election cycle would be complete without reports that the Ron Pauliens stacked the deck in another poll? It doesn't matter if it's an online poll, straw poll, or any other kind of poll. You can bet that if Ron Paul's name is on it, his supporters will vote as often as the system will let them. It's as if they so desperately want him to win an election that they think he'll be able to do it through straw poll osmosis. Remember, many of the Pauliens are 9/11 Truthers so we can only guess what their motivations are but it seems to be that if they think straw poll ballot boxes get stuffed enough, others will take notice and give Paul more credibility. The problem is that the Pauliens' reputation precedes them to the point that they've actually torpedoed any credibility they would deserve if Ron Paul truly did well.

Via CBS News:

Rep. Ron Paul scored a decisive victory Saturday in a mock presidential election at the Values Voter Summit, trouncing fellow Texan, Gov. Rick Perry, but an organizer of the straw poll suggested ballot-stuffing may have skewed the results.

In a press conference following the announcement of the straw poll results at the annual Washington gathering of social conservatives, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins all but dismissed the results as irrelevant, citing 600 people who registered Saturday morning and, he said, "left after Ron Paul spoke."

A total of 1,983 ballots were cast. "You do the math," Perkins said.

A year ago in the same contest, Paul came in second-to-last. Speaking briefly with reporters before the straw poll results were announced, the Republican lawmaker said, "If I win, it wouldn't be as important to the media than if I lose."

Paul has a history of scoring unlooked-for straw poll wins by packing the electorate with diehard supporters. But Perkins said it's too early to take much away from Paul's win. "Let me just take you back four years to this event, when we had a straw poll. Mitt Romney won that straw poll," he said. "I think people are still in the process of deciding where they want to go."

Paul got 37 percent of the vote. The rest of the ballots showed how widely social conservatives support is splintered among the rest of the field.

We take calls from Pauliens and they truly have a one-track mind. It's truly fascinating to witness but it's like dealing with aggressive flies. They so desperately want to recruit you to their side that they're willing to incessantly pester you until you take the leap. Unfortunately for them, their tactics have the opposite effect. They make you reach for the fly swatter.

h/t Hapblog

POLL: OBAMA OVERALL APPROVAL AT NEW LOW

Yesterday, Obama found himself at a new low in the passion index at -19 (gap between those who strongly approve and disapprove of his performance). While he's at a -18 today in that index, he has achieved a new low when it comes to his overall performance. That number is now at 44% and all signs point to that slide continuing. It looks like the "at least somewhat approve" camp got a little crowded when a significant percentage of "strongly approvers" began showing up.

A consequence may have been that a contingent of "somewhat approvers" moved on down to the "somewhat disapprove" category. Keep an eye on this one. We may be witnessing the beginning of a serious shakeup in support for this president. The "strongly disapprove" camp appears to be the only that hasn't really seen a shift yet. However, if there's a number being watched closely by this president, it's that one. Of the four categories, it is one he definitely doesn't want to see grow.



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RASMUSSEN: OBAMA AT A NEW LOW

Not much movement in the Strongly Disapprove category but a serious decline in the Strongly Approve area as a new low of 23% has been reached. For several months, the differential has been between SD numbers in the low 40's and SA numbers in the high 20's. The SD is at 42% but with the SA at 23%, it seems to indicate that some far left loonies are having a big problem with Obama's Afghanistan decision.

Not a huge deal. I have long insisted that the more powerful number is the Strongly Disapprove figure, which hasn't really changed. Though this latest poll is indicative of a loss in passionate support, it's more like left-wing pouting that won't really amount to much.

As further evidence of this, the Overall Approval / Disapproval numbers have not achieved new highs or lows. Again, when the Strongly Disapprove numbers start to climb, it will be a bigger issue.



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Honduras: Bloomberg Calls Referendum a Poll?

The reason for the ouster of Honduras president Manuel Zelaya last Sunday was because he was trying to ensure his re-election via referendum despite the fact his country's constitution prohibits it. The only legal way for him to get his wish is through the amendment process.

While otherwise reporting objectively on the story, Bloomberg's word choices are distubring. Instead of calling attention to the primary reason for Zelaya's ouster, Bloomberg has decided to identify the referendum as a "poll" and a "survey".

Instance #1:
Honduras’s institutions remain united in support of Zelaya’s overthrow. The Supreme Court ruled that Zelaya violated the constitution by trying to hold an illegal poll on whether people support his proposal to change the constitution. The court issued an arrest order for the president on June 26.

Instance #2:
Zelaya also ignored a court order that said he couldn’t fire the head of the military for refusing to oversee the survey, and stormed a military base with a mob of civilians to “liberate” the ballots.

Yet, when referring to how Zelaya ally Hugo Chavez did the same thing to ensure that he would retain power in Venezuela, Bloomberg DID use the term.

The Venezuelan president won a referendum to amend the constitution in February that will allow him to run for re-election indefinitely.

Just to illustrate that I'm not splitting hairs here, check out Merriam Webster's definition of referendum.

1 a: the principle or practice of submitting to popular vote a measure passed on or proposed by a legislative body or by popular initiative b: a vote on a measure so submitted

The terms "poll" and "survey" seem to insinuate that what Zelaya was doing was innocuous and without consequence other than to test sentiment. A referendum carries the tone of something that prompts some sort of action. In this case, the action would have been discarding the constitution.

As the United States, the United Nations, the Organization of American States (OAS), and the Mainstream Media has decided to align with Zelaya, word games such as this only serve to further alienate those in Honduras who are defending their country's constitution.

Any and all arguments coming from those in support of Hugo Chavez ally Zelaya have totally avoided the reason for his ouster, a sure sign they have no real defense for it. The spinmeister arguments simply say he was democratically elected and was the victim of an illegal coup.