A Push Poll Against Rand Paul?

At around 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 4, Rich Weathers got a call. The Edgewood, Ky., businessman had been a Republican voter and donor for years, so he wasn’t surprised to get a call asking his opinions of Senate candidates Rand Paul and Trey Grayson.

“I would say it seemed like a normal GOP survey call, except I noticed that this was a real live person interviewing me,” said Weathers.

Weathers was asked whether he was following the election and whether he planned to vote; he said yes. Once he said he supported Paul, however, “the call began to deteriorate.” He was informed that Paul opposed “our going into Iraq,” that he’s “for legalization of marijuana,” and that he “supported Roe v. Wade.” That last item isn’t even remotely true.

“I said, wait, this isn’t a survey,” said Weathers. “You have an agenda.”

Weathers asked who the pollster was calling for, and she told him Voter Consumer Research in Houston. VCR, based in Texas and D.C., has polled for former President George W. Bush, Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and the three main Republican committees. But as of last night it was unclear who actually funded this poll. It has not billed the NRSC or any campaign in Kentucky, according to FEC data.

“I was hoping for a reasonable GOP survey,” said Weathers, “and got the most blatant push poll I’ve ever seen.”