Newsweek: Late Momentum for GOP

I am always ready to make a mountain out of a molehill. And why not? Only 8 days left; there are few remaining opportunities to get overly-optimistic:

October 29, 2006
Special Sunday Brunch -- 9 Days To Go
A quick rundown of can't miss Sunday developments

This week's Newsweek poll continues to show Dems in a strong position but the poll also found some small movements toward the GOP. Dems led the generic ballot among LVs 53-39% and among RVs, the Dems led 49-38%. Last week, the Dems' generic ballot lead in this poll was 18 points. And for the third poll in a row, Pres. Bush's job rating inched up two points to 37%...

And check out the Newsweek article itself. The numbers are definitely bad for the GOP, but in every way they are better than they were in Newsweek's last poll:

Too Little, Too Late?
President Bush made a big show this week of reevaluating his Iraq policy. It made a difference—but only with his base and only at the margins. The new NEWSWEEK poll finds likely voters still favoring the Democrats.
WEB EXCLUSIVE
By Marcus Mabry
Newsweek

Updated: 1:38 a.m. ET Oct 29, 2006

Oct. 28, 2006 - As the race for Congress enters the homestretch, the Republicans find themselves limping to the finish line, according to the new NEWSWEEK Poll. President Bush’s approval rating continues a slow but steady climb—from an all-time NEWSWEEK-poll low of 33 percent three weeks ago to 37 percent today. But it may be too little, too late: if the midterm elections were held today, 53 percent of those likely to go to the polls would vote for the Democratic candidate in their Congressional district versus just 39 percent who would vote for the Republican...

Almost half of all Americans still believe taking military action in Iraq was a mistake, but the gap between those who say it was and those who say it was the right decision has narrowed: from 54 to 39 last week to 49 to 43 this week—from a 15-point margin to just six points.

Faith that the United States is making progress in Iraq is up slightly, too: from 25 percent of Americans last week to 29 percent this week. A solid majority still believes the United States is losing ground, but their ranks have decreased from 65 percent to 60 percent. The biggest change is among Republicans. Last week, 50 percent of Republicans said America was making progress in Iraq (35 percent said we were losing ground). This week 65 percent of Republicans say we’re making progress and only 22 percent say we’re losing ground...

And while 61 percent of Americans are still dissatisfied with the direction of the country, that compares to 67 percent who were dissatisfied in two NEWSWEEK polls earlier this month. The ranks of the satisfied have grown, if not swelled, from 25 percent to 31 percent...

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