Debate Audience Selected by Firm Squeezed by Obama Justice Department
After the Gallup Organization refused to cave to Chicago-style pressure from the Obama gang -- which according to internal memos published by the Daily Caller had company officials comparing it to a "Godfather situation" -- the Obama Justice Department suddenly joined a three-year-old lawsuit against Gallup. Within weeks, facing the full weight and power of the U.S. government and potential expenses in the millions of dollars, Gallup made changes to its polling methodology that seem to favor Obama.
The whistleblower lawsuit, claiming that Gallup knowingly overcharged the government for work done, was brought in 2009 by a former Obama campaign operative who was later briefly employed at Gallup.
The suit languished for almost three years, until -- after Gallup didn't cave to haranguing from the Axelrod & Co --- the Obama Justice Department revived it in mid-August. At the time, Gallup's daily presidential tracking poll showed Obama's approval at 46%. That number increased a couple of points during the Democrat convention, the sort of bump one would expect. But, as Jay Cost notes, writing at the Weekly Standard, they didn't go back down; they jumped. Up above the 50% landmark.
And while Gallup on average had found Obama's job approval around 47 percent with adults through most of 2012, for the last five weeks it has been regularly above 50 percent. (October 10) it stood at 53 percent, a number we have not really seen since 2009.
What has changed? According to Frank Newport, Gallup's Editor-in-Chief:
It could be coincidence. Yes, it could. I guess.
Which leads us to Tuesday night's town hall. What organization was chosen to select the, supposedly undecided, 80 people in attendance to question the candidates?
The Gallup Organization.
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