Bad News for Barack Obama?

Another day another poll.  This one from The Hill, the Washington paper for political junkies.  It was taken on September 2, just after the GOP convention in Tampa, of 1,000 likely voters.

And the results don't look good for Barack Obama.

Fifty-two percent of likely voters say the nation is in “worse condition” now than it was in September 2008.

Only 31 percent of voters say the nation is in “better condition” today, while 15 percent say it is “about the same.”

So, should the president be re-elected?  A majority say no.

Fifty-four percent say President Obama doesn’t deserve to be re-elected, based solely on his job performance.  Only 40 percent say he does deserve a second term.

And what about the so-called centrists, independents, the voters who, especially in a close race, each candidate needs to win in November?

Fifty-six percent are unsatisfied with Mr. Obama’s handling of the economy. Fifty-three percent say the country is worse off.

Fifty-two percent of voters who consider themselves centrists said President Obama does not deserve re-election based on his job performance.

It’s no surprise that men (57 percent) are more likely than women (51 percent) to believe the president does not deserve re-election.

According to The Hill, “The results highlight the depth of voter dissatisfaction confronting Obama as he makes his case for a second term at this week’s Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, N.C.”

Despite all this, almost every poll shows the race too close to call.

So, the million dollar question:  How can this be?

One possibility is that the American people still like Barack Obama, and likeability goes a long way in politics.  But another possibility is that the voters may simply be lying to the pollsters.

A friend of mine, I’ll call him Sigmund, wrote this to me the other day, outline three possible reasons the polls are wrong:

"1. Those polled don't want to be labeled racists [so they tell the pollsters they’re going to vote for President Obama or that they’re undecided].

2. Those polled are suspicious and distrustful of any perceived, institutional or political questions of any kind.

3. Those polled who are conservative either hang up or decline because they believe their vote is their vote, and none of our business, particularly in today's toxic environment and particularly among older voters who actually will vote."

Sigmund is an analytical guy and in this case may have the wisdom of Dr. Freud.  And if he does, if he’s on to something, that could be good news for Mitt Romney.