Obama Less Popular Than Bush After First Month in Office

[Sgt Schultz]

By Noel Sheppard (Bio | Archive)
February 24, 2009 - 22:51 ET
http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2009/02/24/obama-less-popular-bush-after-first-month-office
As Obama-loving media gush and swoon while they report the new President's popularity, an inconvenient truth emerged Tuesday that seems destined to get ignored: after one month in office, George W. Bush was more popular than the current White House occupant.

http://sas-origin.onstreammedia.com/origin/gallupinc/GallupSpaces/Production/Cms/POLL/vc7-ergb_kkdkegbf-lzuw.gif

Impossible, you say?

Well, before Obama stepped in front of Congress this evening, Gallup published (http://www.gallup.com/poll/116077/Obama-Job-Approval-Dips-Below-First-Time.aspx) the following:

For the first time since Gallup began tracking Barack Obama's presidential job approval rating on Jan. 21, fewer than 60% of Americans approve of the job he is doing as president. In Feb. 21-23 polling, 59% of Americans give Obama a positive review, while 25% say they disapprove, and 16% have no opinion.
Almost exactly eight years ago, then newly-elected President Bush's numbers were 62 percent approving his performance, 21 percent disapproving, and 17 percent having no opinion (scroll about 3/4 down this Polling Report link (http://www.pollingreport.com/BushJob1.htm)).

As such, regardless of how hard media are working to foster this view that this is the most popular president in the modern era, such is not the case.

In fact, even ABC's director of polling reported (http://blogs.abcnews.com/thenumbers/2009/02/strong-but-aver.html) Tuesday that Obama's current numbers are actually quite average with George H. W. Bush, John F. Kennedy, and even Jimmy Carter being more popular after just a month in the White House.

I somehow doubt this will get a lot of attention from the teeming hordes of press members who worked so diligently to get him elected.

:hee:

[kwame k]

Oh, well that changes everything..........thanks.

[LoungeMachine]

IMPEACH !!!!!!!

:lol:

[kwame k]

We must........this will be the shortest Presidency in history. I mean if NewsBusters says it's true..........

[Nickdfresh]

Clinton is more popular than Bush now though, mainly because Bush inherited an overall strong economy that was only slightly faltering (from Clinton)...

Bush's current 34% approval rating or so has been hard earned by his own accomplishments...:)

Is this what you're reduced to? A weekly comparison of popularity ratings?

I thought "polls didn't matter," tool...

Feel free to review the following link than tell us what your point is...

http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/data/popularity.php

[Nickdfresh]

By Noel Sheppard (Bio | Archive)
February 24, 2009 - 22:51 ET ...

For the first time since Gallup began tracking Barack Obama's presidential job approval rating on Jan. 21, fewer than 60% of Americans approve of the job he is doing as president. In Feb. 21-23 polling, 59% of Americans give Obama a positive review, while 25% say they disapprove, and 16% have no opinion.
Almost exactly eight years ago, then newly-elected President Bush's numbers were 62 percent approving his performance, 21 percent disapproving, and 17 percent having no opinion (scroll about 3/4 down this Polling Report link (http://www.pollingreport.com/BushJob1.htm)). ...

:hee:


BTW, the shitty article is a fuck up with their "facts." Bush's "62%" rating was not at "exactly this time," it was towards the end of the first week of March 2001 when that was taken...not too mention statistically irrelevant...

Click the link I posted above...

[Nickdfresh]

Oh look, it's probably bullshit? ABC News reports Obama as popular as Reagan in first month at 68% for each...

A Strong Start for Obama  But Hardly a Bipartisan One
Sixty-Eight Percent Approve of Obama's Performance
ANALYSIS by GARY LANGER

Feb. 23, 2009—

Barack Obama's month-old presidency is off to a strong start, marked by the largest lead over the opposition party in trust to handle the economy for a president in polls dating back nearly 20 years. But the post-partisanship he's championed looks as elusive as ever.

What Grade Would You Give President Obama On His First Month in Office? Tell ABC News.

Among the challenges, Obama's ratings, while high overall, are marked by the sharp political divisions he's struggled to overcome. Backing for his economic stimulus is more broad than deep, with somewhat muted expectations for its success. And concerns about the federal budget deficit are running high.

Nonetheless Obama clearly holds the upper hand, both in overall approval and on the dominant issue of the day. He leads the Republicans in Congress by 61-26 percent in trust to handle the economy, the biggest such lead for a president in ABC News/Washington Post polls since late 1991. (Bill Clinton came close at the start of his first term.)

More broadly, 68 percent of Americans approve of Obama's job performance to date, not atypical for an incoming president (it precisely matches Ronald Reagan's first-month rating, and trails George H.W. Bush's) but a striking counterpoint to George W. Bush's departing 33 percent approval last month. Bush hadn't seen a 68 in five and a half years.

Partisanship, though, seems inescapable: Obama's approval rating, 90 percent among Democrats, dives to 37 percent among Republicans  a rating equally as partisan (in the other direction) as Bush's initial approval after the disputed election of 2000.

Support for Obama's stimulus plan, similarly, is 64 percent overall, but half that, 32 percent, among Republicans. Reasons include their sharply lower confidence that the plan will work, their sharply higher concern about the federal budget deficit  and broad concerns about adequate oversight of all that federal spending.

If Obama's hopes for a post-partisan presidency are falling short, he does get credit for trying  another area in which he far outpoints the opposition. Seventy-three percent of Americans say he's been trying to compromise with Republican leaders in Congress on important issues. Fewer than half as many, 34 percent, say the Republicans are trying to compromise with him.

In a related rating, 68 percent say Obama is "bringing needed change to Washington," the campaign promise he rode to Washington through the primaries and the general election alike. Again, though, Republicans are less than half as likely as Democrats to say so.

Deficit Worries and Partisan Politics

There's also been a dramatic advance  if still highly partisan  in views that the nation is headed in the right direction, up from 8 percent in October (a low in 35 years of polls) to 31 percent today. That change has occurred entirely among Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents, up from 4 percent "right direction" in October to 43 percent now. Among leaned Republicans it's been flat, 13 percent then, 15 percent now.

Obama addresses a joint session of Congress tomorrow night.

DEFICIT  The deficit, on which Obama was holding a White House summit today, is a rare issue of broad agreement: Eighty-seven percent of Americans say they're concerned about it, including more than eight in 10 Democrats, Republicans and independents alike.

But the number who are "very concerned" about the deficit has risen by 10 points since mid-December, the increase occurring exclusively among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents - from 47 percent "very concerned" in December to 73 percent now. (And among people who strongly oppose the stimulus plan  chiefly Republicans  even more, 81 percent, are highly concerned about the deficit.)

The agenda for Obama's summit included Social Security and Medicare, two critical programs whose financial integrity is in broad doubt. Just 39 percent of Americans are confident Social Security will be able to pay them their full benefits throughout their retirement; about the same number, 37 percent, think they'll get adequate health coverage from Medicare. Far fewer are "very confident" of these  11 and 8 percent, respectively.

PARTISANS and POLITICS  If tenacious partisanship is a disappointment to Obama, it may be a bigger bummer for the Republicans, whose party remains greatly weakened after the long-unpopular Bush presidency. Three results tell the story:

" The Democratic Party leads the Republicans by 56-30 percent in trust to handle the country's main problems. That has slightly improved from 56-23 percent in December, as congressional Republicans found a unified voice in opposition to the stimulus. But the December number was the Republicans' worst in ABC/Post polls since 1982; they still have far to climb.

" Fifty percent of Americans approve of the way the Democrats in Congress are doing their jobs, while 44 percent disapprove  if hardly a barn-burner, still the Democrats' best in two years, since April 2007, just after they regained control of Congress. And their Republican counterparts are a good deal weaker: 38 percent approve, 56 percent disapprove. (Democratic gains have come mainly in two groups: among Democrats themselves, and among liberals. Seventy-seven percent of Democrats now approve of their own party; just 55 percent of Republicans feel the same about theirs.)

Obama Handling Economy, Stimulus

" The Democrats are holding the edge in partisan affiliation they've built since 2004, when the public soured on the Iraq war and the Bush presidency in turn. Thirty-six percent in this poll identify themselves as Democrats, just 24 percent as Republicans. On average in 2003, by contrast, the parties were at parity, 31 percent apiece.

Ask independents how they lean and the split goes to 54-37 percent Democratic  a substantial advantage for Obama and his party even within the bounds of partisan preferences.

OBAMA/ECONOMY  Obama's approval rating for handling the economy, 60 percent, is a bit lower than his rating overall, but not bad given the economy's condition; indeed, 56 percent think the country's not in a normal downturn but something more threatening - "a serious long-term decline." That's a level of gloom unseen since 1992.

Obama's approval rating on the economy, moreover, is 36 points higher than Bush's departing rating on the same issue. But the partisan gap here is especially large: Eighty-three percent of Democrats approve of Obama's economic work. Twenty-four percent of Republicans agree.

In another area, 64 percent approve of Obama's handling of appointments to his Cabinet and other key government positions  despite some flubs, notably in his selections to lead the Health and Human Services and Commerce departments.

STIMULUS  While, as noted, 64 percent in this poll support the stimulus package, "strong" support is lower, 34 percent, and down 9 points from January. It's declined by 16 points among independents, 11 among Republicans.

The deficit is not the only concern. While 58 percent are confident the stimulus will make the recession less severe, just 13 percent are "very confident" of it. And 63 percent think more economic stimulus ultimately will be needed.

Also, while 62 percent think the stimulus will help their local economy, fewer, 46 percent, expect it to improve their own personal financial situation. Nonetheless, that's 15 points more than said so about Clinton's economic package in February 1993.

There's another red flag: Fewer than half of Americans, 46 percent, are confident the federal government will put in place adequate controls to oversee the stimulus spending; 52 percent think not. That's better than the views of Bush's controls on TARP spending  69 percent saw those as inadequate. But it's hardly a ringing endorsement of the controls Obama's pledged to put in place.

Differences by Age and Income

There are areas beyond the stimulus spending for which Obama has support. Seventy-six percent favor stricter regulations of banks and financial institutions, and 64 percent favor Obama's $75 billion plan to provide mortgage refinance assistance.

But the Detroit automakers are another issue: Sixty-eight percent of Americans oppose providing them with the additional federal loans they've requested, even if needed to stave off bankruptcy  another of the relatively few issues on which substantial majorities of Democrats, independents and Republicans agree.

GROUPS  Beyond partisanship there are some notable differences across groups. Young people were a core support group for Obama in the election, and remain so; among adults under age 30 his overall approval rating peaks at a startling 84 percent, compared with 59 percent in his weakest age group, seniors.

Preference for Obama over the Republicans to handle to economy similarly peaks among young people, at 71 percent; among middle-aged Americans that drops to 49 percent.

There are income gaps here as well; among people with incomes less than $50,000, 66 percent approve of Obama's handling of the economy; among those in $100,000+ households, this drops to half. Two possible reasons: Better-off Americans are more apt to be Republicans. And they're in Obama's crosshairs on taxes.

METHODOLOGY  This ABC News/Washington Post poll was conducted by telephone Feb. 19-22, 2009, among a random national sample of 1,001 adults including both landline and cell phone-only respondents. Results for the full sample have a 3-point error margin; click here for a detailed description of sampling error. Sampling, data collection and tabulation by TNS of Horsham, PA.

Copyright © 2009 ABC News (http://abcnews.go.com/PollingUnit/Politics/story?id=6939993&page=1) Internet Ventures

[kwame k]

Geez, you ruined a perfectly good thread by using them there fancy facts.

[GAR]

BTW, the shitty article is a fuck up with their "facts."

More than a mere fuckup of facts, you're just a fuck UP!

[Andy Taylor]

The ABC article does say that Obama's ratings trailed that of Bush.

[LoungeMachine]

More than a mere fuckup of facts, you're just a fuck UP!

Way to stay on point, all the while ignoring Nick, Gump.

:gulp:

[Nickdfresh]

More than a mere fuckup of facts, you're just a fuck UP!

Did GAyR actually manage to spell all of the words correctly?:biggrin:

Why don't you stick to the Dump where you can mask your incompetence?

[Nickdfresh]

The ABC article does say that Obama's ratings trailed that of Bush.

Um, H.W. Bush's....who was a one-termer...

[Andy Taylor]

My mistake.

[Susie Q]

The media is a tainted whore. They are either with you and love you to bits or they can throw you down like Bobby Flay and fry your ass.

What matters to me is that this seemed to be the first President Elect that had his shit together BEFORE he even took office. This was the first president that I saw get his cabinet together BEFORE he took office. This was the first President Elect that had news conferences BEFORE he took office. What did that say about the actual President at the time? Not a whole hell of a lot.

As far as Obama being less popular, for every article that says that or every "analytical research" done that shows this, there are double the articles that contradict them.

Politics are like a fickle bitch, as is the media.

[kwame k]

Damn, Susie.......how do you really feel about it?:biggrin: You go girl!

[swage33]

Hey guys, Obama owns the whole thing...he has house and senate. IF YOU DO NOT HIT A FUCKING HOMERUN WITH THIS ARSENAL, YOU WILL LOSE IT. The american people are fickle...as far as they see it, he has every tool he needs to fix this shit....he better succeed.

[Susie Q]

Damn, Susie.......how do you really feel about it?:biggrin: You go girl!

:0 Just tellin' it like it is n' stuff. :hee:

[Andy Taylor]

But that isn't how it is.

Obama's popularity is proof of the media/public fickleness.

[bueno bob]

Yes, I can definitely sense the anger, resentment, hostility and aggression towards Obama now.

Well, from the Republican camp, anyway.

[sadaist]

Makes no difference what his approval rating is now. Only matters at re-election time.

[sadaist]

This trend surely won't help though....

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/02/27/fedbudget_t450.jpg?613272c032846e7268e57ee632edc62 88efb17ce

[Va Beach VH Fan]

It's kinda like if Joe Montana or Terry Bradshaw, or Emmitt Smith or Jim Brown for that matter, had a shitty offensive line, they'd just be journeymen....

For the time being, it ain't gonna matter if it were Reagan, Clinton, FDR, Kennedy, whothefuckever, until people start getting back to work and their 401K's start rebounding, the President's ratings are gonna suffer...

Just another indication of the clusterfuck of a mess that dipshit W left Obama....

[ELVIS]

:0 Just tellin' it like it is n' stuff. :hee:

Yeah, you only left out the tiny detail that he was full of shit...


:elvis:

[Sgt Schultz]

Obama's Poll Numbers Are Falling to Earth

link (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123690358175013837.html)

http://s.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OB-DH271_oj_sch_D_20090312202459.jpg

Polling data show that Mr. Obama's approval rating is dropping and is below where George W. Bush was in an analogous period in 2001. Rasmussen Reports data shows that Mr. Obama's net presidential approval rating -- which is calculated by subtracting the number who strongly disapprove from the number who strongly approve -- is just six, his lowest rating to date.

M.E. CohenOverall, Rasmussen Reports shows a 56%-43% approval, with a third strongly disapproving of the president's performance. This is a substantial degree of polarization so early in the administration. Mr. Obama has lost virtually all of his Republican support and a good part of his Independent support, and the trend is decidedly negative.

A detailed examination of presidential popularity after 50 days on the job similarly demonstrates a substantial drop in presidential approval relative to other elected presidents in the 20th and 21st centuries. The reason for this decline most likely has to do with doubts about the administration's policies and their impact on peoples' lives.

[Kristy]

Politics are like a fickle bitch, as is the media.


This is why you have every right wing hack on TV/radio pontificating on and on that Obama should resign to save face before he takes America on the path of Stalinism while consequently lacking anything positive to say about their own party.

No point to my reply really, other to say I've never seen so many Rethuglicans whore themselves out for camera time but having nothing to say other that Obama is not right with the rich white boy pro-war, corporate ass-kissing GOP.

Oh well...more bickering as America rots

[Combat Ready]

Oh well...more bickering as America rots

And your post is not bickering? Works both ways?

[Kristy]

And your post is not bickering? Works both ways?

Gimmie a break. I haven't woke up yet.

For the most part, I like Obama but the guy really needs to quit tripping over his own ego. His whole Bono rock star-esque stunt last month while in Canada chasing beaver tail (no jokes, please) was stupid. I hope the Secret Service bitch-slapped him for putting them on edge by pulling such an impromptu stunt like that.

[Combat Ready]

Gimmie a break. I haven't woke up yet.

:lmao: Deal.....


For the most part, I like Obama but the guy really needs to quit tripping over his own ego. His whole Bono rock star-esque stunt last month while in Canada chasing beaver tail (no jokes, please) was stupid. I hope the Secret Service bitch-slapped him for putting them on edge by pulling such an impromptu stunt like that.

Agreed! :)

[Nickdfresh]

Obama's Poll Numbers Are Falling to Earth

...
M.E. CohenOverall, Rasmussen Reports shows a 56%-43% approval, with a third strongly disapproving of the president's performance...


LMFAO!! Nice fucking poll! A 13-point flux? Really?:biggrin:

[Nitro Express]

I got fed up a long time ago and decided we were just going to fuck ourselves and because of how we behave we deserve to get fucked. I'm just going to crack open a beer and watch the freak show because that's all it is.

[LoungeMachine]

Gimmie a break. I haven't woke up yet.

.


Sorry guys....

I kept her up pretty late last night.....

:gulp:

[Combat Ready]

Sorry guys....

I kept her up pretty late last night.....

:gulp:

You're a fucking animal Lounge!:biggrin:

[GAR]

For a minute there I read it as "you're fucking a animal Lounge" and I had to laugh, thinking about their combined mass upon a mattress rated half such weight.

[Angel]

His whole Bono rock star-esque stunt last month while in Canada chasing beaver tail (no jokes, please) was stupid. I hope the Secret Service bitch-slapped him for putting them on edge by pulling such an impromptu stunt like that.

Do you really believe that wasn't planned? Funny, they interviewed the guy who owns the beaver tail shop on Canada AM, before Obama was even in the country... I'm sure it was a planned stop...

[hideyoursheep]

Sorry guys....

I kept her up pretty late last night.....

:gulp:



<a href="http://photobucket.com/images/smiling%20bob" target="_blank"><img src="http://i161.photobucket.com/albums/t213/rosemilkeny/sb-1.jpg" border="0" alt="smiling bob Pictures, Images and Photos"/></a>



:tongue0011:

[katie]

Sorry guys....

I kept her up pretty late last night.....

:gulp:

http://www.rotharmy.com/forums/front-line/......

[LoungeMachine]

Thanks for posting in the Front Line katie.... :lol:

:gulp:

[katie]

more to follow...........

[LoungeMachine]

more to follow...........

Feel free.

Just be careful what pics you post.

And remember Sarge's rules for BANNINGS


:gulp:

[katie]

Feel free.

Just be careful what pics you post.

And remember Sarge's rules for BANNINGS

I Love Sarge


:gulp:

Fuck Off you arse licking piece of shit

x