Normally I do not engage in discussions over which polling firms do good work and which do not. My policy has been to publish polls and let readers reach their own conclusions about which polls are credible and which are not. However, due to Public Policy Polling’s findings in the poll I published yesterday, involving Rick Perry’s numbers in Texas, I am also going to publish the criticism of PPP’s polling by the Republican Party of New Mexico. From the release by the New Mexico Republican Party: Public Policy Polling (PPP) is a left-wing group that polls for Daily Kos, the liberal national blog, and has spent this year releasing cooked polls against Republican elected officials and governors.  And the evidence is damning. PPP admits that it was founded to conduct “free” polls and then promote them in the media to “counter Republicans.”  Unlike credible polling firms on both sides of the aisle, the goal of PPP’s robocall polls is not to accurately measure public opinion, but rather to create public opinion against Republicans.  (emphasis original) This year, PPP has consistently skewed approval rating surveys against Republican Governors across the country to create unfavorable media stories in their states. This is clearly demonstrated by comparing the approval ratings of GOP governors in PPP polls with their approval ratings in other polls, including independent public and media polls. While every poll has a margin of error of a few points, PPP has reported Republican approval ratings as much as 28 points lower than other surveys done at the same time. “What’s noteworthy is that even after indefensibly slanting the poll against Republicans, PPP still concludes that [New Mexico Governor Susana] Martinez is one of the most popular governors in the country,” said Republican Party of New Mexico executive director Bryan Watkins. This is what PPP had to say about Martinez: Susana Martinez continues to have some of the most impressive approval numbers in the country. We find 50% of voters approving of her to 39% who disapprove. She’s one of only 11 Governors PPP has found this year with an approval at 50% or higher, and she’s the most popular out of the new Republican Governors elected last fall that we polled on. But the commentary does not excuse the blatant attempt by PPP to skew numbers in favor of Democrats and against Republicans. This year, PPP has consistently skewed approval rating surveys against Republican Governors across the country to create unfavorable media stories in their states. This is clearly demonstrated by comparing the approval ratings of GOP governors in PPP polls with their approval ratings in other polls, including independent public and media polls. While every poll has a margin of error of a few points, PPP has reported Republican approval ratings as much as 28 points lower than other surveys done at the same time. [end of release] * * * * I have devoted considerable space to this discussion, because I think it exposes the dirty laundry of the polling world–on both sides, I might add–and because Rick Perry’s standing in Texas is the subject of some of PPP’s claims. Both the Star-Telegram and the Chronicle reported on the PPP poll.