Black GOP presidential candidate Ben Carson fares well in polls for the primary election, but his unabashed criticism of President Obama could hurt his chances among Blacks....Democrat Hillary Clinton leads all Republican and Democratic candidates or is in a too-close-to-call match-up, primarily against Republican Jeb Bush....By Cleveland Urban News.Com Contributing Writer John Michael Spinelli

GOP presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson

By John Michael Spinelli, contributing writer. Spinelli is a seasoned  independent writer stationed in Columbus, Ohio who covers people, politics, government matters, and beyond. 

Reporter John Michael Spinelli

Cleveland Urban News.Com and the Kathy Wray Coleman Online News Blog.Com, Ohio's leaders in Black digital news. Tel: (216) 659-0473 and Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com (www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com

In separate polling news, Dr. Ben Carson does not fare as well nationally for next year's  Republican presidential primary as he does in the state of Iowa, according to a recent CNN poll.(Editor's note: Another national poll on the Republican primary commissioned by the University of Monmouth and announced by Carson's campaign team late last month, has Carson faring in the top three of
all declared GOP candidates.Carson is Black and an ultra-conservative Tea Party favorite and former John Hopkins neurosurgeon who is the first surgeon to successfully separate conjoined twins in America. But some Blacks have called him an 'Uncle Tom' for his unabashed criticism of President Barack Obama, America's first Black president, including his alleged comment that the president is a "psychopath." Black voters though, are overwhelmingly Democrats, and many that are Republican support Obama, data show).

In a new CNN/ORC national poll taken on July 1 , Carson finds himself in fourth place at 7 percent, far behind leader Jeb Bush at 19 percent. Behind Bush, a former governor of Florida and a brother of former president George Bush, is Donald Trump  at 12 percent, up from 3 percent before his recent entrance into the race. 

Former Arkansas governor Mike  Huckabee scores 8 percent  in that poll with U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky at 7 percent to round out the top five. 

Presidential polling this far out from the national political party conventions schedule for late summer next year should rightfully be viewed with a very skeptical eye. 

Guaranteed to change in the months to come as candidates and their succeed or stumble, early polls are like pre-game warm ups, they give voters a glimpse at how these professional political athletes are performing before the game starts for real.

Carson, however, shows favorably in Iowa, the state that holds its caucuses early on and is an indicator of how presidential candidates will fare in general. 

A June poll performed by Quinnipiac University asked Iowa Caucus goers to weigh-in on the long list of Republican candidates for president, both declared and unannounced. Conducted June 20 - 29, the poll surveyed 666 likely Iowa Republican Caucus participants. Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker leads the pack in the Iowa Republican Caucus, but his support is shrinking among likely Republican Caucus participants, as six other contenders battle for second place, according to poll results. 

Walker has 18 percent of likely GOP caucus participants, compared to 25 percent in a February 25 poll and 21 percent in a May 6 survey. Competing for second place at ten percent each are Carson and Trump. 

Sen.  Paul  and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas both hit 9 percent,  Bush  topped out at 8 percent and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida registered 7 percent.  Huckabee has 5 percent, while Ohio Gov. John Kasich, who set July 21 to make his announcement, could only muster 2 percent.

New Jersey Gov. Christopher Christie, who made his announcement last Monday, is in 15th place with 1 percent. 

Asked of likely GOP caucus goers if Carson has strong leadership qualities, 56 percent overall said yes, with 66 percent of self-identified Tea Party advocates saying yes, while his lowest rating of 44 percent came from those who identified as "moderate/liberal." 

Is Carson honest and trustworthy or not, the poll asked? Nearly three-fourths [or 74 percent] said yes, with 85 percent of Tea Party goers approving. White, born-again evangelicals were in line at 74 percent with the totals. Those who said no ranged from 2 to a high of 7 percent. Among the seven categories of likely voters—Tea Party, Born Again Evangelical, Very Conservative, Somewhat Conservative, Liberal, Men, Women—not knowing Carson or having enough information about him ranged from a low of 13 percent with Tea Party and Very Conservative to a high of 34 percent with liberals. 

Lots of Republicans are running for president, but not many Democrats. For Democrats, Hillary Rodham Clinton, the odds on favorite to be the nominee next year, leads [or is in a too-close-to-call-match-up, primarily against Bush]
all GOP candidates in head-to-head matches. (Editor's note: Clinton now has a credible contender for the Democratic primary next year in Democratic U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of New York, who announced his candidacy in May). (www.clevelandurbannews.com) / (www.kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com