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Opinion: Ron Paul polls just 4 points below Obama if the two ran head-to-head

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Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas), among the most conservative members of the House and for many a long shot in the 2012 presidential race, would be only a 4-point underdog against President Obama at this time, according to a poll released Friday.

Rasmussen is reporting that Obama is in a virtual tie with Mitt Romney; the former Massachusetts governor is polling 1 point ahead of the president. In polling of Romney versus Obama, the president received 42% compared with Romney’s 43%, a tossup considering the margin of error.

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But when Obama is placed next to Paul, the president receives only 41% support the lowest number he would have against a Republican. Paul got just 37% support against Obama, but the longtime congressman’s libertarian beliefs are still unknown to many American voters.

Meanwhile, who wouldn’t be curious to see how Obama, who was previously known as the most liberal senator in congress, might look in the eyes of antsy voters when compared to Paul?

Voters who supported Obama in 2008 because they were promised change would probably be delighted at the speed Paul with which would try top end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and his resistance to involving the U.S. in foreign military actions.

‘If we want to do something for humanity, we need a new foreign policy,’ Paul said on the floor of the House in March as Congress debated a no-fly-zone over Libya. ‘We need a foreign policy that isn’t built on militarism; it’s built on more cooperation and more trade and not picking dictators.’

Want more change? Look no further than the marijuana bill jointly proposed to Congress in June by Paul and Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) that would let the states decide how they want to enforce laws on the ancient weed. According to Rasmussen, Obama would beat declared candidates like Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota and and former Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty; he is also polling better than those who are waffling about entering the race like Sarah Palin and Rick Perry.

‘But the real story in the numbers is that the president continues to earn between 41% and 49% of the vote no matter which Republican is mentioned as a potential opponent. This suggests that the race remains a referendum on the incumbent more than anything else,’ Rasmussen wrote on its site.

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-- Tony Pierce
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