Poll: Obama up by 4 points, edges Romney on economic issues

{mosads}The president also edged — albeit narrowly — his Republican challenger on economic issues, traditionally thought to be a strength for Romney. Of those surveyed, 45 percent said the president was able to do a better job with the economy, versus 44 percent who picked Romney. Obama held a seven-point advantage when respondents were asked which candidate was “on your side,” and the president held a 12-point advantage on the question of which candidate better shared voters’ values.

That could be evidence that the president’s persistent attacks on Romney’s personal finances are working — or that the GOP challenger is still struggling to get out from under voter dissatisfaction with the Republican Congress.

Asked to describe their feelings as “warm” or “cool,” voters described their reaction toward the Republican Party as shaded a net 13 points towards “cool,” while Republicans in Congress held an 18-point deficit. Conversely, Democrats in general only carried a net three-point “cool” rating, while Democrats in Congress saw a eight-point negative reception.

While 49 percent of voters said they had a “warm” sense about the president — versus just 41 percent with a “cool” feeling — Romney saw 46 percent of respondents say they felt “cool” toward him, versus just 38 percent who felt “warm.”

Still, not all the news was good for Democrats. Voters were far more likely — by a 58 to 36 percent margin — to say the country was headed in the wrong track. And despite voters feeling more warmly about the president’s party, that hasn’t translated into an advantage in congressional polling. On a generic ballot, Democrats and Republicans split evenly, each earning 46 percent of respondents.

The firm polled 700 respondents in its survey, and had a 3.7 percentage point margin of error.