A brutal year shaping up for Democrats

There’s a new NBC poll out on President Obama’s popularity and the “difficult political headwinds” Democrats face in the midterm elections.

“Difficult” may by an understatement. It foreshadows a potentially brutal election cycle for Democrats saddled with explaining ObamaCare.

Two highlights that jumped out at me were:

— Obama’s job-approval rating dropped to 41 percent, a new low in this poll.

— Forty-eight percent of voters are less likely to vote for a solid supporter of the Obama Administration. (Paging Sen. Mark Pryor, Arkansas voters would like to have a chat.)

In another finding — and this may be the one silver lining for Democrats in the poll — if ObamaCare is “framed as a choice between fixing the law and repealing,” 48 percent of voters side with fixing it.

But here’s the killer. The playing field clearly works against Democrats and an unpopular president.

“How do Republicans have the early midterm advantage? Look no further than the 2014 playing field, with most of the top Senate contests taking place in GOP-friendly states. In fact, Republicans can win control of that chamber simply by winning six of the seven races in Alaska, Arkansas, Louisiana, Montana, North Carolina, South Dakota and West Virginia – as long as the party doesn’t lose a single Republican-held seat.”

Here’s a link to the poll. I think it fairly describes the battlefield landscape.