Of course polls this early may not be all that meaningful, but there are a few points here the Republicans should be quite alarmed about...

#1 - No Republican can muster even 40% against Obama. And these aren't no-name candidates. Palin just ran a national campaign, her name and face are known in every household in America, and yet she draws only 37% support. That's pathetic.

#2 - This clearly is not a biased, pro-Obama poll. It shows his approval at just 55%, while most other national polls show his current approval rating at a higher level, in the low to mid 60's.

The main takeaway from this early poll isn't so much the strength of Obama as it is the incredible weakness of the potential Republican opponents. Another purpose of these early, seemingly premature polls is to provide relative "winners" like Huckabee with an early opportunity in the battle to recruit volunteers and supporters, and secure a few contributions before his Republican opponents can snatch them up...

Public Policy Polling (D)
5/14-18/09; 1,000 registered voters, 3.1% margin of error
Mode: IVR

National

Obama Job Approval
55% Approve, 38% Disapprove
Dems: 84 / 11
inds: 55 / 36
Reps: 19 / 71

2012 President - General Election
Obama 53, Gingrich 36
Obama 52, Huckabee 39
Obama 56, Palin 37
Obama 53, Romney 35

Party ID
40% Democrat, 34% Republican, 26% independent