The Week in Polls: July 21

President Obama is winning on economic issues.

President Obama - President Obama raised a jaw-dropping $86 million during the presidential election cycle's second quarter, including $38 million that will be shared with the Democratic National Committee. It’s also more than the $35 million that the GOP field raised collectively. Here's how they did: Mitt Romney, $18.25 million; Ron Paul, $4.5 million; Tim Pawlenty $4.1 million; Jon Huntsman, $4.1 million; Herman Cain, $2.5 million; and Newt Gingrich, $2 million.(Photo: AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

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The Debt Ceiling Debate   - President Obama is winning the argument over the debt limit. According to a new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, 38 percent said the debt ceiling should be raised, versus 31 percent who said it shouldn't. Fifty-eight percent of respondents, including 88 percent of Democrats and 55 percent of independent voters, say they favor Obama’s “balanced” approach of spending cuts and taxes. In addition, an ABC News/Washington Post poll found that 58 percent of Republicans think the GOP isn’t doing enough to reach an agreement on raising the debt ceiling.

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Economy vs. National Debt   - Americans are feeling more pessimistic than ever about their prospects for finding a good job. Nine in 10 of respondents to a Gallup Poll survey said that now is not a good time to find a quality job. In addition, 31 percent say that the economy is the nation’s most pressing problem, while 27 percent and 16 percent, respectively, say that unemployment/jobs or the federal deficit/debt is more important.

Rick Perry - Texas Gov. Rick Perry has been in the GOP presidential race for a mere few days, but he’s off like a shot and suddenly one of the party’s top three contenders. He’s backpedaling on previous positions, such as a 2007 effort to require girls to be vaccinated against the human papillomavirus, the principal cause of cervical cancer.(Photo: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

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Republican Field - Texas Gov. Rick Perry and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani are still toying with the idea of throwing their hats into the GOP presidential nomination race, but they’re scoring high with supporters. In a Gallup poll, Perry tied with Rep. Michele Bachmann in “positive intensity” at 21 percent, while Giuliani came in just one point below them. Herman Cain, at 25 percent, remains on top, but that might change following his controversial comments about Islam and Mormonism this week.

Mitt Romney - Mitt Romney, who faced criticism for his silence during the debt ceiling crisis, is taking advantage of the Standard & Poor's downgrade of the nation's credit rating to criticize President Obama's stewardship of the economy. "The president is the person that leads the nation and leads the effort in Washington, and if it's tough working there, welcome to the real world," Romney said in a speech in New Hampshire this week. "I'm afraid the president is just out of his depth when it comes to understanding how the private economy works."(AP Photo/Charles Krupa)

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Obama vs. Romney   - In the latest Public Policy Polling survey, President Obama has some work to do to beat former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney. The GOP presidential hopeful is tied with Obama at 45 percent. The bad news for the president is that independents were split against him by a 44/49 margin. Meanwhile, 16 percent of Democrats are unhappy with the job he's doing, and only 10 percent of Republicans give him good marks.

Barack Obama - Notable quotes from political leaders and analysts on the issues of the week.“Never in our history has the United States defaulted on its debt. The debt ceiling should not be something that is used as a gun against the heads of the American people to extract tax breaks for corporate jet owners or oil and gas companies that are making billions of dollars because the price of gasoline has gone up so high. I mean, I’m happy to have those debates. I think the American people are on my side on this.”--President Obama on the debt limit. (Photo: AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

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Obama, the Middle Class and Small Businesses    - An overwhelming majority of Americans believe that the president cares more about middle class families and their financial concerns than Republicans in Congress do, a Washington Post-ABC News poll has found, by a margin of 53 percent to 35 percent. Small businesses also believe that Obama is more interested in protecting their interests than the GOP, by 48 percent to 39 percent.

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Congress Approval Rating  - In a new Washington Post/ABC News poll, 30 percent of respondents said they would vote to reelect their legislator; 63 percent said they would look around for someone else, marking a new record.

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Obama's Approval Rating   - An overwhelming majority of Americans believe that the president cares more about middle class families and their financial concerns than Republicans in Congress do, a Washington Post-ABC News poll has found, by a margin of 53 percent to 35 percent. Small businesses also believe that Obama is more interested in protecting their interests than the GOP, by 48 percent to 39 percent.

Government Spending Cuts - Six in 10 Americans, including Republicans, Democrats and independents, want members of the new "super committee" charged with recommending federal budget cuts to compromise, even if they personally disagree with the final plan, according to a new Gallup poll. A majority of Tea Party supporters (53 percent), however, say members should hold out for a plan they agree with even if it prevents the committee from reaching an agreement.

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Financial Reforms and Protections - A new poll released by the Center for Responsible Lending found that by a margin of three to one, an overwhelming majority of Americans of all ideological stripes favor “strong, sensible oversight of the financial services industry,” including the independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to be put in place to prevent sub-prime mortgages and other fiascos that led to the nation’s economic meltdown.

Mitt Romney   - Mitt Romney has some deciding to do. The perceived frontrunner now faces some stiff competition from Perry. As The Washington Post reports, when Perry starts going after him, Romney “won’t know what hit him.”(Photo: AP Photo/Jim Cole)

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Mitt Romney Leads GOP Rivals - Mitt Romney is leading the pack in the race for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. Sarah Palin, who still hasn't tossed her hat into the ring, is second; Rep. Michele Bachmann is third. Rep. Ron Paul of Texas was the only other candidate to score in double digits.