While Barack Obama leads in many polls, he will have trouble overtaking John McCain in one part of the polls: trust. Specifically, people would not trust Obama with commanding the military, meeting with foreign leaders, or their daughters. A recent Real Wisconsin News poll backs up those previously released by CNN, Fox, Gallup, and a blogger named Jeff.
While most Americans claim they are “color blind” and that many of their best friends are black, the poll suggests Obama’s race may play some role in the lack of trust. In fact, for the first time ever, some people are saying they will not vote for Obama based on race. In response, Obama’s campaign has released an ad calling attention to McCain’s Irish ancestry. The voiceover in the commercial claims, “Once upon a time in American history, black men were slaves and Irishmen were indentured servants. In fact, many Americans would not even let an Irishman into their homes, while they allowed blacks to work with their families. This November, let a black man work for you in the White House…better than a Mick and you won’t have to hide the keys to the liquor cabinet.”
The recent telephone poll conducted by Real Wisconsin News reveals, however, that regardless of McCain’s heritage, Americans still have issues with race. We will reproduce a sampling of the questions and answers here:
Which candidate would you trust more as commander of our military? McCain-70% ; Obama-30%
Which candidate would you rather see meet with foreign leaders? McCain-65% ; Obama-35%
Which candidate would you trust with your daughter? McCain-90% ; Obama-10%
Which candidate scares you more? McCain-30% ; Obama-70%
Are Irish people more scary or funny? Scary-20% ; Funny-80%
Which candidate would you hide your purse/wallet from? McCain-12% ; Obama-88%
Which candidate would win in a basketball game? McCain 12% ; Obama-88%
Which candidate would be more likely to have cheated on a spouse? McCain-35% ; Obama-65%
Would you not vote for a certain candidate because of race? Yes-5% ; No-95%
Are white people genetically smarter than blacks? Yes-15% ; No-85%
Are black people genetically better at sports than whites? Yes-60% ; No-40%
Is ‘Chocolate Prez’ a good nickname for Obama, if elected? Yes-15% ; No-85%
Should Michelle Obama be called “The First Black Lady”? Yes-50% ; No-50%