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Rasmussen Poll: 65% See Gun Rights As Protection Against Tyranny

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Two-out-of-three Americans recognize that their constitutional right to own a gun was intended to ensure their freedom.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 65% of American Adults think the purpose of the Second Amendment is to make sure that people are able to protect themselves from tyranny. Only 17% disagree, while another 18% are not sure. (To see survey question wording, click HERE.)

Not surprisingly, 72% of those with a gun in their family regard the Second Amendment as a protection against tyranny. However, even a majority (57%) of those without a gun in their home hold that view.

Many gun control advocates talk of the right to gun ownership as relating to hunting and recreational uses only.

While there are often wide partisan differences of opinion on gun-related issues, even 54% of Democrats agree with 75% of Republicans and 68% of those not affiliated with either major party that the right to own a gun is to ensure such freedom.

Read more from this story HERE.

Poll: 75 Percent Want Congressional Term Limits

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Three out of four Americans support term limits for members of Congress, a new poll finds.

According to a Gallup survey posted Friday, 75 percent of adults nationwide back term limits for members of the House and the Senate, while 21 percent say they would vote against term limits. Term limits received bipartisan support in the poll: Republicans would back such a measure 82 percent-15 percent; independents would do so 79 percent-17 percent and Democrats favored term limits 65 percent-29 percent, even as most incumbents won their races again in November, Gallup noted.

This survey comes at a time when many Americans have a negative opinion of the Hill.

Read more from this story HERE.

Poll: Future for U.S.? 42% Say Nation Will Collapse; Some See Dictator Soon

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One in seven Americans believes that the nation eventually will be ruled by a dictator, and another one in five says it eventually will break up into several sovereign regions, according to a new poll reflecting the dark shadow the country is facing.

More than one in four respondents believe the United States likely will collapse not just in their lifetime, but in the next decade, meaning the successor to Barack Obama would be unable to finish a second term.

Others believe a new “democracy” will arise from the ashes of the current republican form of government.

The results are from a telephone poll conducted for WND by the public-opinion research and media consulting company Wenzel Strategies. It was taken Jan. 9-12 and carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.22 percentage points.

Asked to speculate on what would happen to the U.S. after a hypothetical failure of the current government, a plurality said they think some new sort of democracy would emerge.

Read more from this story HERE.

Poll: Boehner Now Less Popular Than Pelosi

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photo credit: donkeyhotey

Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) now ranks as the least-liked congressional leader, with just 31 percent of voters holding a positive opinion of the Republican leader and more than half — 51 percent — saying they view the Ohio congressman unfavorably.

That’s the first time in several years that Boehner has slipped below House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) in the Rasmussen survey. The Democratic leader held a 37 percent favorability rating in the poll.

The poll was released Friday, just hours after Boehner was unable to rally Republican support behind his “Plan B” proposal, intended to secure additional leverage in “fiscal cliff” negotiations with President Obama. And it comes just a day after President Obama’s approval rating in the Gallup daily tracking poll hit 56 percent, the highest mark for the president since October 2009.

Boehner’s slipping popularity likely comes from voters’ wariness with Republicans as the deadline to reach a debt deal approaches.

In a Pew Research poll released earlier this month, 53 percent said they would blame the GOP if the crisis was not resolved, versus just 27 percent who said they would blame Democrats.

Read more from this story HERE.

Rasmussen: Highest-ever Support for Reduced Government Spending

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photo credit: bensonk42

Nearly three out of every four voters want Washington to slash spending, according to a new Rasmussen Reports poll.

Overall 73 percent of likely voters believe the federal government should cut its spending rather than increase it, the survey reported.

Just 18 percent believe an increase in federal spending is a better solution to the country’s economic woes.

“That’s consistent with earlier data showing that just 19 percent want to see more stimulus spending at this time,” reported Rasmussen.

Read more from this story HERE.

Study: American Households Hit 43-Year Low In Net Worth

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Washington – The median net worth of American households has dropped to a 43-year low as the lower and middle classes appear poorer and less stable than they have been since 1969.

According to a recent study by New York University economics professor Edward N. Wolff, median net worth is at the decades-low figure of $57,000 (in 2010 dollars). And as the numbers in his study reflect, the situation only appears worse when all the statistics are taken as a whole.

According to Wolff, between 1983 and 2010, the percentage of households with less than $10,000 in assets (using constant 1995 dollars) rose from 29.7 percent to 37.1 percent. The “less than $10,000″ figure includes the numerous households that have no assets at all, or “negative assets,” which is otherwise known as “debt.”

Over that same period of time, the wealthiest 1 percent of American households increased their average wealth by 71 percent.

As noted by Daily Finance, from 1983 to 2010 the share of total wealth held by the richest 10 percent of American households increased from 68.2 percent to 76.7 percent. Meanwhile, all the rest of Americans lost financial ground.

Read more from this story HERE.

Huckabee Leads Iowa Poll for 2016 GOP Presidential Race

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photo credit: gage skidmoreFormer Arkansas Gov. and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee leads the field of possible contenders for the 2016 GOP presidential race in Iowa, according to a new survey of Republican voters from Public Policy Polling.

Huckabee, now a radio talk show host, garnered 15 percent support in the poll, taken Nov. 3-4. He was followed by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan, and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at 12 percent.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush placed fifth with 11 percent support, former presidential candidate Rick Santorum was sixth with 10 percent, and former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice scored seventh with 9 percent.

Trailing them was Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul with 5 percent and former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin with 4 percent.

Read more from this story HERE.

RT News: Russians Overwhelmingly Believe Obama Would Best Serve Their National Interests

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An overwhelming percentage of Russians said the reelection of US President Barack Obama would better serve Russia’s national interests as opposed to the presidential challenger, Mitt Romney.

With the presidential race in the United States going down to the wire among American voters, Mitt Romney must be thankful that Russian citizens are not eligible to vote in US elections.

In a nationwide poll that tracked Russians’ political attitudes, a whopping 41 per cent of respondents said they want to see President Obama voted back into the White House, while just 8 per cent expressed preference for Republican challenger Mitt Romney…

The Russian public’s extremely negative attitude towards Mitt Romney comes as little surprise since most Russians are familiar with the Republican contender only from his “anti-Russian” comments.

Earlier this year, Romney called Russia “America’s number one geopolitical foe.” For those who thought that may have been a misinformed slip of the tongue, he said at a later appearance that he would show more “backbone” with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The Russian leader, however, said he was “thankful” for Romney’s candor.

Read more from this story HERE. Please note that the source story is from RT News. RT News originates from Russia and has alleged connections to the Russian government.

Obama Clings to Slim but Shrinking Leads in Virginia, Minnesota

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Obama’s Virginia Lead Shrinking

Amy Gardner and Scott Clement. President Obama is clinging to a slender four-point lead over Republican Mitt Romney in Virginia as both sides ramp up already aggressive campaigns in the crucial battleground state, according to a new Washington Post poll.

Obama outpolled Romney, 51 to 47 percent, among likely Virginia voters, although he lost the clearer 52-to-44 percent advantage he held in mid-September.

Unlike in the Washington Post-ABC News national tracking poll, Obama still has an edge when Virginia voters are asked who better understands people’s financial problems, and he has not fallen behind a surging Romney on the question of who would better handle the national economy. Nor has Obama lost significant ground among self-identified independents in Virginia, as he has nationally.

The results underscore the importance of swing states like Virginia, with its 13 electoral votes, as both campaigns seek to secure a path to the 270 electoral votes needed for victory.

Perhaps the poll’s most striking insight concerns the many voters the two campaigns have contacted in Virginia this fall. A staggering 44 percent of likely voters polled said they had been contacted by the Obama campaign; 41 percent said the same of Romney’s. More than one in four had heard from both campaigns. Read more from this story HERE.

And Obama is Losing Ground in Minnesota, Too

By Rachel Stassen-Berger. As the presidential race tightens across the country, a new Star Tribune Minnesota Poll has found that it is narrowing here as well, with President Obama holding a 3-point lead and Republican Mitt Romney making gains in the state.

The poll shows Obama with support from 47 percent of likely voters and Romney earning backing from 44 percent — a lead within the poll’s margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.

Last month, Obama had an 8-percentage point advantage in the Minnesota Poll. Romney has apparently cut into the Democrat’s advantage among women since then and picked up support from Minnesotans who were previously undecided or said they would vote for a third-party candidate.

Independents, on the other hand, are leaning more toward Obama. Barely a third supported him last month, but that number has grown to 43 percent. Romney’s support among independents remains virtually unchanged, with 13 percent of that group remaining undecided.

In an indication of how close the race has become, both campaigns have started airing ads in the state targeting Minnesota and western Wisconsin voters. Read more from this story HERE.

Video: Romney’s Support Among Independents Skyrocketing

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In a Washington Post-ABC News Poll, Republican Party Presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s support among independents is skyrocketing from just a three point margin to nineteen points in just four days.

Currently, independent voters support Romney by 57% to President Barrack Obama’s 38%.

If this spread sticks – or grows – it could be sharpest independent voter shift since President Ronald Reagan’s 1984 49-state landslide in his second-term election.

Additionally, national polling among all likely voters is showing Romney leading, although some electoral projections still predict an Obama win:

Rasmussen: Mitt Romney 50% nationwide, Obama 47%.

Gallup: Romney 50%, Obama 47%.

ABC News/Washington Post: 49% Romney, 48% Obama.

Reuters/Ipsos: Romney 47%, Obama 46%.

AP-GfK: Romney 47%, Obama 45%.

Here’s the video breakdown of the independent voter shift: