The line should read "Most important issues to NH voters "-
- can you give me a Dee dedeeeeee

Edwards should be the biggest winner in these circumstances

Edwards 2008

How many people does this poll represent?
Why aren't independents represented in this poll?
Please give more information., thanks.

I would sure like to see the Democrats pay a bit more attention to our boarders. Otherwise I am 100% with them.
The economy is really scary these days! I just want a nice, fair primary. Bill Clinton needs to zip it!

Obama is a joke. He has no ounce of experience to run the country. Obama and Bush is the same person, idiot. Americans are smarter than that so make the right decision. We're not voting for the American Idol now, we're selecting the leader of the free world so make you voting count.

Independents aren't the top priorities for the other parties, hence why not shown what they think. Nobody cares.

I saw an episode of a tv series called Sliders once where
the sliders slid on a world and were getting something
to eat at a hotdog stand , the caterer had turned on the
tv and on that world or dimension the President was
Clinton , because I remember when the President
was making a speech , Professor Arturo's face dropped ,
but unlike him , I think it would not only be different , but
it's about time we had change in the White House , so
maybe that episode of Sliders may come through , I
think Hillary would make a fine President , not only is she
is pretty , she's got experience backing her up, her husband .
And she is talented and gifted as well .Just one issue we
need to take care of here and now , that is Iran , Has anybody
noticed or been paying attention on how close a man name
Nostrademus has been right . We better pay close attention
to his last few predictions about Iraq and Iran and the Middle
East , hope you win , Hillary . Good luck and Godspeed .

I'd like to see a link for the 2004 video in question. Shouldn't the press be showing this video? The voters should be able to see the evidence in order to determine whether Obama's claim of always being against the war is in fact true.

It,s either me or your wrong . Your Poll ticker is 5 minutes off at least. And that is important to anybody who votes because I watch cnn all the time and if I was at work and came home I would see that firstOh by the way I like Lou Dobbs please send me his book.also love to meet him and go on his show

It sounds like Bill cannot take what he has dished out for years. Politics is not a pretty thing. He knows that. Who knows, Obama may be like Ohio State - fast out of the gate but cannot sustain momentum.

Bill Clinton has a nerve accusing ANYONE of spinning fairy "tails" after having publicly disgraced the office of the United States President in front of the entire world. Did we all forget how he lied to our faces and embarassed us all globally? Is his scorned, spineless wife the one we want to lead our country in these dangerous times? …or is it a ploy for him to get back in a position of power?
All his speech did, was remind me of HIS legacy - do we really need more deceit back in our Whitehouse?
Thanks for letting me vent!

I like how the economy is the biggest issue in the exit polls and people are going to actually say that and still vote huckabee or romney. jokes.

oh jeezus you moderate these…. i guess that throws debate out the window huh?

If you think the country will be stronger if we have stronger families, then vote for Mitt! What good is a strong military if there is nothing left to protect. The Family unit is under attack and he is the only candiate that seems to understand this and is prepared to do something about it!

The Flip-flopper tag just dosn't fit for Mitt. Sure he changed his mind about a couple of different issues over the years, all of them have at some point. I would rather see a person that can learn from their experiences than for one to pretend to keep the same ideas just so they don't get called names. He has all the same positions he had when he was Governor.

Examine the issues, then vote for Mitt!!!!

Actually, the reason that independents aren't shown might be because you can't be an 'Independent primary voter." When you go to vote, you have to choose between either a Republican or a Democratic ballot. I don't know that this is definitely the reason, but it makes sense to me. Please try to think these things through before getting so angry, that's not what we need in this country right now (or ever).

Chuck Norris?!? Give me a break…who cares what YOU think……..you are living in a fantasy world….

Ok bright lights, there is no "independent primary." The people EXITint the polls, who were questioned for the EXIT POLLS had just voted in either the Republican or Democratic primary. That does not give us any solid information as to what party, if any, they are affiliated with.

This poll doesn't tell us much about where the votes are going in NH. If the question was experience vs. change then we would have an idea. Eric in CA is correct that, if Edwards message is resonating, this is good news for him. But, if the economy is the top issue and he does poorly, he is all but done.

Cade,
I think that it is amazing that Republican supporters are now redifining what flip-flopping means…did we forget John Kerry and the last election….such hypocrites!!

The economy is first and most important issue facing the candidates. However we need an economy based on principles like the gold standard, so our dollar does not go extinct. We need solutions and resolve, not more government nor welfare. We will be feeling the pinch probably by the Presidential election which is in November 2008. The euro in 2001 was about .75 cents usd , now its reached about or nearing 1.50 usd. solutions and resolve is what's needed ,not more war, destruction, and death.

Carol Hoosier,

Obama was NOT raised a muslim, ya dingbat! That myth has been discredited over and over.

Obama is another Bush under a different party. He is not ready to be president! Hillary Clinton is smart and experienced!

with those isues Mike Huckabee will be a simple,easy,1rst or 2nd. MIKE HUCKABEE FOR PRESDENT 2008!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Both parties have bankrupted our country. Lets try a third option.

Dear Carol Hoosier,
I am very sorry to hear about your mistreatment while you were traveling. I would just like to put it out there that I have also done extensive traveling (in fact, I lived for a year in a country that is 35% Muslim) and have not experienced such. Yes, there is extremism in many places, yes there are countries in which young people are taught to hate America, and yes many of us have been hurt by this extremism. But I do want people to know that there are some Muslims out there who don't hate America, and who aren't out to get us.

P.S. As long as I'm talking about the truth, Barack Obama was not brought up as a Muslim. That would have been difficult, considering that neither of his parents were Muslim (although one of his grandmothers is).

It will be nice when John Edwards is our next president. You guys will like it too. Edwards is going to be the biggest winner under the above circumstances.

I am insulted people would think Hillary would get my vote just because I am also a women. There's nothing more attractive then a man who adored his mother, and loves his strong wife

Obama is an idiot. Everything that comes out of his mouth, is worthless rhetoric. What has he really done that gives him any prerequisite to be President of the United States? Absolutely nothing! Shame on him for brainwashing those impressionable, naive voters in Iowa and New Hampshire.

Mike Huckabee is a bigot. I will never vote for the man.

Calling Hillary the smartest woman in the world is an insult to over 50% of the women in the world. Those women would be able to pass the WDC bar exam.

is no one getting this? Obama and Edwards are working together, thats going to be the ticket. Obama sits on the sidelines while Edwards acts like his attack dog! The republicans could beat this ticket, look at there voting record and get a grip people! The right wing media are pumping Obama only to drag him down and get there guys back in!

Obama say, “Some kind of change, I’m gonna make
I don’t have to need the experience it’ll take.
If it’s change you want I’ll be your man
Tell you the truth I don’t need a plan
I’m not gonna feel the stress
If my change creates a mess
This election is no sweat for me
All have to do is say “change” you see.

Richard Kallao

"think Hillary would make a fine President , not only is she
is pretty , she's got experience backing her up, her husband ."

Richard….I agree with half of that

Is there a reason why the Republicans have 4 top issues and the dems 3? Is it because the media needs to make sure "Illegal Immigration" is on the list somewhere?

Someone said "I do not see how people think Obama can be president with no experience. I do not believe America can withstand a president who thinks with a few months in the Senate he is ready to take on the world. "
…Ummmm, how long has Hillary been in the the senate? Also, Obama was in the State senate for years before the US senate… what was HC doing again?

What will HC do today (act tough -check; throw mud-check; cry-check; insinuate assasination of black people as a reason to vote for her-check; Use further fear mongering (terrorism) as a vote for her-check). Is she insisting that she would be tougher on terrorsim than Obama? On what basis, b/c she sponsored the Invasion of Iraq? really? Really? Any of you falling for all this or are you just supporting her for the Return of the King?

Mitt Romney keeps talking about stronger families, but I haven't heard anything about how he intends to make that happen. What does he think he could do to implement that?

I can't believe you guys are still talking about Obama being a Muslim. He was not raised as a Muslim. His father was raised as a Muslim, but was not a practicing one during the 2 years he spent with Barack. My mother was a Catholic, but that does not make me one. He went to a state school for a couple of years when he was in Indonesia which is a Muslim country, but he also went to a Catholic school for part of that time. You betray your ignorance and that you are a person who falls for anything they hear when you make these unfounded comments. Do some investigation. At the very least go look at the fact checking websites to find out if something is true before you spread it around. It is pretty easy to find out if something said about a candidate is true if you care enough to look.

I live in Texas.
I'm blue collar and illigal immagration isn't even in my top four issues.
Why do people in NH think this is such an issue for them?!

"How many people does this poll represent?
Why aren't independents represented in this poll?"

The poll taker was standing at the exit from the town hall and gave the survey to any exiting voter who was willing to fill it out.

To vote in the NH primary, you need to declare one party or the other to get a ballot. You tell the volunteers which ballot you want and they mark you for that party on the voter registration list and give you the ballot. After you vote, you can fill out a change form to go back to undeclared status. So essentially, there are no independents voting.

Hillary Clinton is the best candidate to turn around our sagging economy. I hope that like her husband Bill Clinton, will give us another TRILLION DOLLAR SURPLUS and another President who will be able to balanced the budget.

The war in Iraq. The present administration's intelligence was flawed. They did not verify if the information that was provided by their informant if it was credible. They were at fault and should take that responsibility. We can't turn back time we can only look ahead and think of the safefty of our troops and civilians.

Edwards, Guilliani, Obama are inexperience candidate. With our present situation right now (domestic and international), we need a President who has experience to lead our country.

Don't vote for inexperience candidates we got one sitting now for 2 terms already.

I agree, I want to get behind Obama, but he really doesn't say anything to distinguish himself from, say, Edwards. Couple that with his limited politics and I am afraid we would send this guy out there to get beat. I also love how Republicans, like Romney, has really convinced people that families are under attack. From what, the terrorists or the economy? Maybe I am selfish and naive, but I worry more about my job!

The pollsters who conduct these surveys should also ask whether you would consider "experience" against "hope" to vote for a candidate. If you weigh how much knowledge and experience each candidate has on each of the important issues, Hillary is a clear winner. Whereas on the speech delivery on these issues, Obama has a plus point. Americans have to decide whether they need an experienced person or a good talker.

The promise "change" means nothing to the person who goes to bed on the Jan 19, 2009 as one of 47 million uninsured Americans to only wake up on Jan 20, 2009 to be one of the 15 million Americans who is still uninsured. Romney and Obama the "Real" agents of "Change". Ha!!

"I would sure like to see the Democrats pay a bit more attention to our boarders."

No kidding. I'm tired of seeing them let all these people who can't properly use our American language cross our "boarders."

Have we all forgotten what the bush/rove power machine did while in office and don't forget that the very republicans running for the office of the precidency right now supported them by vertue of thier party affiliation.
In the fall of 2002 bush got on airforce one and scowered the country looking for votes for his republican congrees/senate. this whole campaign was paid for by the pharmisutical companies in this country. once he got them elected he made it illegal to sue a pharmisutical company. then he made it illegal to buy drugs in canada telling us that he was protecting us from bad drugs. when local states bought the drugs any how the bush power machine backed off and said it was okay to buy drugs in canada. did we all forget the financial impact that his actions had on the elderly of this country. did we all forget what the intent of his actions were and guess what, the republican party supported his actions. how can any one in thier right mind vote for these people. they make me sick to my stumick. now lets get to the war. oh my god! can any one immagine that bush would have gotten even one vote had any of us known what he was going to do after 911.This trigger happy idiot now wants to attack Iran. When is this country get it right. Stop the politics. when a rogue president acts like this impeach the bastard. this is suppose to be the home of the free and the brave not the scared and intimidated.

Californians will be supporting Edwards unless Gore jumps in at the last minute. But the entire field of Dems and Repubs looks bad. No stellar or even mediocre candidates to be found.

I’ve always been in favor of California seceding. What do Californians have in common with Washington, or any other part of the country? Nothing, except the rest of the US enjoys our tax dollars.

*************************************************
Schwarzenegger for President of California!
*************************************************

I assume this was a multiple choice exit poll, rather than free response. Both the situation in Iraq and the immigration situation are part of our overall economic situation. The cost of the war (financial, human and moral) will be with us for a long time as we pay it off and the country critically needs intelligent, controlled immigration for the economy to grow.

Sadly, I haven't seen much leadership from either party that even shows an understanding of the intertwining of these issues, just a lot of emotional rhetoric.

Why would anyone vote for a candidate with less than 8 years of political experience?……hell, it takes at least 2-3 years in office to just learn the ropes and start to make alliances with your fellow legislators.
How much experience does hillary, obama, edwards, thompson, huckabee and romney have?…….Add it up, and i think you'll find the total to be in the general area of Ron Paul's years in Congress.
Do any of the above politicians have his steadfast, consistent record in there short terms as a professional politician?
Will any of the above risk their parties backing and their fellow legislators ire because its the right thing to do? You know he will!
DO NOT LET THIS ELECTION BE WON OVER BY SLICK "LIP SERVICE" and "CATCHY PHRASES"
Want changes…..get up some nerve and vote for the straight shooter……………………..RON PAUL

That's all we here is clinton this , obama that, it would be funny to see edwards takes N.H.

Michelle,

The rumor about Obama swearing-in to the Senate with the Koran is absolutely false, and a vicious and frankly racist/Islamophobic lie at that. Obama, as everyone has pointed out here, is a Christian. He attends the Unitarian Church in Chicago with his family.

As for the hand-over-the-heart "crisis," Obama places his hand on his heart like every other American for the raising of the American Flag and for the Pledge of Allegiance. There is no protocol for the National Anthem, and, while many Americans tend to place their hands over their hearts for the song, it is not "required."

Obama's campaign also quickly clarified after the ensuing media brouhaha that the senator does, in fact, usually place his hand over his heart for the anthem. I, as a regular voter, cannot answer for this one particular case.

I support Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination, I am a lifelong and highly patriotic moderate Democrat, and I am Jewish. I do not see why Christianity should be a consideration in voting for elected officials, and I find the heart-cover controversy, widely disseminated by Republican operatives, to fly in the face of the conservative establishment's own complaints of over-the-top political correctness.

Though I view Sen. Obama as my second choice, I hope that voters support Sen. Clinton or any other candidate because of their competence and leadership, not because of knee-jerk nativist fears. That it why I find it necessary to clarify these misconception about Sen. Obama, whom I feel is an honest and respectable leader.

seth~ i completely agree. also, many people are only voting for hilary because of her being a female or because of her husband.

they dont really want her.

obama '08!

We need a new energy policy.That will take care alot of the probelms in this country.We need to start a whole new way of doing things from autos to small engines to electricty.

Well, it is clear to see that the American people, at least as represented here, have done absolutely ZERO homework with respect to the Democratic candidates running for President. I wonder, can anyone here tell me which of the top 3 Democratic contenders have held an elected office the longest? No? I'm sure it would surprise you that it is Barack Obama, with 11+ years, followed by Senator Clinton with almost 7, then Edwards with about 4. Have any of you taken the time to look up the legislation any of the candidates have proposed while working for us in Congress? No? Well, you should check out the Senate homepage and do a little search, Senator Clinton's legislation reads like a laundry list of tea parties at the taxpayers expense with such resolutions as "Using the rotunda in the Capitol for a ceremony to honour Constantino Brumidi on the 200th anniversary of his birth" and "to congratulate the Magen David Adom society in Israel for achieving full membership in the International Red Cross". Whereas, by comparison, Senator Obama has introduced such legislation as "A bill to provide transparency and integrity in the earmark process" and "A bill to promote the national security and stability of the economy of the United State by reducing the dependence of the United States on oil through the use of alternative fuels and new technology".

It's clear several of you have bought into the media spin without bothering to fact check, otherwise you would not be on here talking about some assumed "inexperience". Do any of you know what Senator Obama has been doing from the campaign trail? No? Well, he's been calling the leaders in Kenya trying to get them to resolve the crisis that is currently tearing that country apart using diplomatic solutions, he's even enlisted the help of the State Department to this end…did any of you *know* that? Do any of you even know what is going on in Kenya?

Inexperience indeed, sounds like some people are very afraid of change and would like to see a Bush/Clinton/Bush/Clinton duopoly continue its stranglehold on the White House and the people of the United States of America. Shame on you all for not being more active citizens and knowing when to separate the fluff from the substance.

I am scared

I didn't get it. The exit poll tels us that 51% of the Republican voters want their next presidential canditate to support even more conservative policies than the Bush administration did? Ok, now I am really scared.

cade, I just have to ask, who is attacking the family unit. Where do you get that from. It's like the war on Christmas, it's all made up, it's all in your head. The family unit isn't under attack, our civil liberties are under attack, our freedom is under attack, and it's under attack from this administration. Stop being afraid of the boogeyman, and start paying attention to the realities going on around you.

GEAUX HUCK!!
FAIR TAX!!

At least we moved away from stem cell research and gay marriage.

Although the Republicans list the economy and the war in Iraq they still beat the Terrorism drum. That will probably, eventually go the way of the war on drugs.

Democrats Beware,
Illegal immigration is quickly emerging as the the number one issue amongst all voters, because it is directly affecting our job market, economy and national security. Hillary found out the hard way with the N.Y. illegal immigrant drivers license issue! Secondly, many Democrats were tricked into the anti-war scenario with Micheal Moron and moveon.org. and face possible annihilation if the "Republican Surge" defeats them in Iraq before the election. At least the war is keeping a lot of people employed. The real war is here at home competeing with cheap Mexican labor, high taxes and no real plans for the future. Illegal immigration is costing us our jobs, homes and english speaking way of life. The rest of the issues really doesn't matter, just take a look at their latest handy work,'Michigan'!
Thanks MG,

I want Hillary Clinton to win hands down with Wesley Clark as our next VP to bring our troops home responsibly. The economy needs to be helped.

The only problem I see is the illegal immigration issue……Hillary wants to secure the borders so that is good……

She is compassionate so that is good….

But I think Americans take issue with Immigration more than she would like to believe…

I'm voting for her but I wish Immigration strategies are further discussed within Democratic circles……so that we can deal with this issue.

Obama, Obama, Obama. Still time, get out there and vote for CHANGE!