Bush Widens Lead Despite Scandal

NewsMax.com's Fr. Michael Reilly notes that the Democrats' presidential contender has been unable to capitalize on the deluge of bad publicity for the Bush White House.

After what most pundits would consider a week from hell for President Bush, a new poll conducted since the Iraqi prisoner scandal indicates that he has actually widened his lead over Sen. John Kerry.

Investor's Business Daily/TIPP polled 981 adults between May 2 and May 8 [after the scandal broke] and found that Bush leads Kerry 46 percent to 41 percent, with Ralph Nader garnering 5 percent. Even without Nader, Bush is still leading Kerry 47 percent to 44 percent.

Worse still for the Dems, Bush is leading Kerry in 18 key swing states by 49 percent to 40 percent. Among independent voters, it's a statistical dead heat, with the president at 40 percent and Kerry at 39 percent.

"Despite a tough month, Bush seems to have come out ahead," said Raghavan Mayur, president of TIPP, a unit of TechnoMetrica Market Intelligence and IBD's polling partner. "Bush's ratings have improved among 15 of the 21 demographic groups we track."

Another big factor in Bush's favor is voter intensity: 68 percent of Bush's supporters strongly support him while only 38 percent of Kerry backers are strongly committed.

The poll also indicates that Bush's advertising in swing states has made a real difference. in April, Kerry was leading the president 45 percent to 41 percent in key battleground states. He now trails Bush in those same states, 51 percent to 36 percent.

Editor's note: