Democrats have been dismissing polls that show a generic Republican beating Obama in a presidential matchup. They justify their derision by saying that when specific candidates are named, polls have shown that Obama is in the lead. Not so much it seems if the recent Quinnipiac poll is considered:

Forty-six percent would vote for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney while 42% would vote for Obama, the poll found. Romney has been gaining in Quinnipiac head-to-head matchup. In July, Obama had a six percentage point advantage; by August, the two were tied.

If Obama's Republican contender was Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Obama would do better, but the race would still be tight, the data shows. Forty-five percent would cast their vote for Obama, compared to 44% for Perry. That's within the poll's margin of error -- 2.1 percentage points.

Of likely Republican voters, 22% said Romney was their favorite nominee. That's 4% more than in mid-August, but still 3% less than in July. Businessman Herman Cain placed second with 17%, followed by ex-frontrunner Perry, who would have the support of 14% if the GOP's primary were being held today. Since August, Cain's support climbed from 5% while Perry's dropped 10%.

The race is still yet to come but as we approach next November, positions are hardening against Barack Obama with the intensity of opposition to him climbing while the intensity of his support is falling. Momentum is a hard force to stop in politics and judging by Barack Obama's recent "rage strategy" he risks losing the independents that carried him to victory in the hallucinogenic days of 2008.