As we've noted for the past week or so, the Beltway press seems rather obsessed with highlighting what journalists insist are the president sagging (and troubling!) poll numbers. The urge was so strong that the entire news teams at ABC pretty much refused to report accurately on its own poll which showed Obama enjoying a sky-high job approval rating of 65 percent. (For the CW crowd, that was def. the wrong poll result.)

What's been completely missing from most of the poll reporting is any context as to how Republicans are doing right now. The press seems to think it's a very, very big deal that Obama's approval rating, in general, seems to have slowly slid down in recent weeks. But that slight decline is usually viewed in a vacuum. What voters think of Republicans is of little interest to the press. And I think I know why. If reporters spell out how historically unpopular the GOP is right now, it completely undercuts the drama they're trying to create about Obama's relatively robust poll numbers.

For instance, in his piece on Obama polling this week Politico's Ben Smith not once spelled out for readers where Republicans stood. The only passing reference came in this passage, where Smith quoted a spokesman for a Democratic Congressional candidate:

Furthermore, he noted, despite some signs of Democratic weak spots, the opposition is even less popular on key issues. “The national Republican brand is not in good shape,” [Jared] Leopold said.

You don't say.

The context is important because right now the press, purposely I think, is painting a false portrait. The press stresses Obama's approval rating is falling. But politically, Obama is not competing with himself. He's competing with the opposition party, whose popularity is actually in free fall. Theoretically, it's possible that if voters continue to hold Republicans in such low regard, Obama's approval rating could fall another 15 points in the next three years and he could easily be re-elected. But the press pretends that with each lost approval point Obama is inching into trouble.

Which brings me to this Minnesota report from Public Policy Polling which does put things into proper perspective:

Barack Obama's approval rating in Minnesota has dropped six points since April, but that doesn't mean voters are responding too positively to some of his Republican alternatives.

The poll details that Obama's approval rating in Minnesota is down six points, but that he would easily defeat home state Republican Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty if here were the GOP nominee in 2012. The poll also found that, in Minnesota, Obama would crush Sarah Palin if she were the 2012 nominee.

That's the context the press often ignores; Obama's approval ratings are down, but he still dominates over Republicans. For some reason most pundits and reporters only want to focus on the first half of that equation.