The pundits claim that Mitt Romney is the Republican who matches the best against Barack Obama. Well a new poll shows Newt and Obama in a dead heart. In fact, Newt does better than Mitt Romney.

WASHINGTON — Newt Gingrich is the strongest Republican candidate when matched head to head against Democratic President Barack Obama, according to a McClatchy-Marist Poll released Tuesday.

The former speaker of the House of Representatives is neck and neck with the incumbent president, back just 2 percentage points among registered voters. Obama leads 47 percent to 45 percent.

Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is next closest, trailing Obama by 4 percentage points. In that matchup, Obama leads 48 percent to 44 percent.

Rep. Ron Paul of Texas is the third best bet for the Republicans right now, 8 points back from Obama. No other Republican is within single digits of Obama. The survey has an error margin of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

[….]

“He runs better,” said Lee Miringoff, director of Marist College Institute for Public Opinion in New York, which conducted the national survey. “It’s a closer race with him than with Romney or the others.”