Are Hillary's favorables "unusually high"?

Writing in the New York Times, David D. Kirkpatrick claims Hillary Clinton's favorable ratings are "unusually high":

Mr. Keene said, "[Hillary Clinton's] image as the wicked witch of the left was burned in the minds of conservatives and the larger public before she tried to moderate her image." He noted that polls consistently give her the highest unfavorable ratings among the front-runners, typically more than a third of the public. (Her favorable ratings are also unusually high.)

But is this really true? Consider favorable/unfavorable numbers from the latest USA Today/Gallup poll (2/9-2/11):

Hillary Clinton: 58/40
Barack Obama: 53/19
John McCain: 57/26
Rudy Giuliani: 66/22
Mitt Romney: 18/18
John Edwards: 49/31
Al Gore: 52/45

Or consider the latest Washington Post/ABC News poll (1/16-1/19):

Hillary Clinton: 54/44
John McCain: 49/35
Barack Obama: 45/29
Rudy Giuliani: 61/29

In short, Hillary's favorable numbers are not particularly unusual when compared with her most well-known competitors, and her unfavorable numbers are higher than any announced candidate (only Al Gore compares).

Comments

[Noumenon]

Wow, I can't believe that's not a fact. He stated it as though it were a little-known fact. Evil!