“There is an alarming shift in key demographic segments that do not bode well for the Senator,”

[CatWoman]

the senator being referred to is Saxby Chambliss, (R), (Chickenhawk Asshole)

In polls, Buckley has been drawing 2 to 6 percent of the vote in a Senate race that has gotten a lot closer in recent weeks. Under Georgia law, which requires the winning candidate to get a majority of the votes, that would probably be enough to force the race into a runoff Dec. 2.

That possibility has drawn a lot of attention, not just here in Georgia but nationally as well. With Democrats within reach of 60 Senate seats, the magic number needed to prevent filibusters, the seat now held by Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss has become a critical hold for the GOP. And typically, incumbents drawn into a runoff don’t do well.

According to the three-page memo Page 1 | Page2 | Page 3., faxed anonymously to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, McLaughlin & Associates conducted a series of polls immediately after debates among the three candidates.

“There is an alarming shift in key demographic segments that do not bode well for the Senator,” the memo states. “Our data indicates that support among the 35-50 and 50-65 white male segment is softening. It also appears that they trending towards the Libertarian candidate.”

The memo, on what purports to be McLaughlin & Associates letterhead, was allegedly written by Brian Larkin, director of qualitative research at McLaughlin. When contacted at his office in New York Tuesday, Larkin denied any knowledge or involvement. When I mentioned I had the alleged memo in my hand, on McLaughlin letterhead with his name as its author, the phone went silent for a few moments. Larkin then asked for my phone number and promised to return the call.

Ten minutes later, he called and again denied his company had conducted any polling in the Georgia race. Later that afternoon, company CEO and founder John McLaughlin called to reiterate that claim, calling the memo a forgery.

Given its unknown source, we initially decided not to report on the memo unless we could tie down some loose ends. That decision changed when McLaughlin called late Wednesday morning to say he had leaked “to some of my media friends that somebody is trying to do this as a dirty trick,” and that other reporters may be on the story.

This has already been a strange election season. But come Nov. 5, it would become stranger still should a Georgia Libertarian become kingmaker of the U.S. Senate, his influence critical in determining whether Democrats make it to 60 seats.

http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/ajc/bookman/index.html