Most say Romney policies favor the rich
CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto.
(CBS News) A majority of registered voters believe that presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney's policies favor the rich, according to a new CBS News/New York Times poll.
Fifty-three percent say Romney's policies favor the wealthy. Eleven percent say his policies favor the middle class, while two percent say they favor the poor. Thirty percent say Romney's policies treat all groups equally.
Americans were split on which segment of society is favored by President Obama's policies. Twenty-one percent say his policies favor the rich, while 22 percent say they favor the middle class and 24 percent say they favor the poor. One in four say his policies treat all groups equally.
Asked separately which candidate will do more to help the middle class, 52 percent pointed to Mr. Obama, including 15 percent of Republicans. Thirty-eight percent cited Romney, including five percent of Democrats. Among independents, 48 percent cited Mr. Obama while 40 percent cited Romney.
Most voters say Romney's personal wealth - estimated by the candidate to be at least $190 million - and his experience as the head of the private equity firm Bain Capital will not impact their vote. Seventy-three percent say Romney's wealth will make no difference to their vote, while 60 percent say his Bain experience will not impact their vote.
One in five, however, say Romney's wealth will make them less likely to vote for him, including 18 percent of independents. Only five percent say it will make them more likely to back him.
Twenty-three percent, meanwhile, say his Bain experience -- which has come under fire from Democrats who have cast Romney as an outsourcer -- will make them less likely to vote for him. That includes 39 percent of Democrats and 22 percent of independents. Fourteen percent say it will make them more likely to back him, including 29 percent of Republicans and 13 percent of independents.
MORE FROM THE POLL:
Obama, Romney in dead heat in presidential race
Most say Obama policies contributed to downturn
John Roberts more popular among liberals than conservatives
VP choice matters to most voters
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This poll was conducted by telephone from July 11-16, 2012 among 1,089 adults nationwide.
Phone numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cell phones. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups may be higher. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.