Here come the polls

It was inevitable that stories start popping up about how the Foley scandal (and its attendant story of the GOP turning a blind eye) would make for some hot gossip about poll numbers. And several outlets are reporting that this could be the tipping point for the GOP, that it's going to make all the difference:

With midterm elections less than five weeks away, the latest Associated Press-Ipsos poll found that about half of likely voters say recent disclosures of corruption and scandal in Congress will be very or extremely important when they cast their vote next month.

The poll of 1,501 adults, including 741 likely voters, occurred Monday through Wednesday as House Republican leaders came under increasing pressure to explain what they knew of sexually explicit messages from former Rep. Mark Foley of Florida to teenage pages.

I'm still of the opinion that polls are too much of a snapshot, and that five weeks is still too long in political time for this to sway the election. But given the zeal with which Republicans are still trying to find a way to use the story against Democrats, their fear isn't abating.