President Obama’s Approval Ratings Drop Fast
Well, that didn’t take long. President Obama’s approval ratings are dropping fast, shockingly fast considering he just took office. But I’m not surprised, given all the gaffes.
To start, Obama has a knack for appointing Democrats who don’t like to pay their taxes. And he likes I’m-in-touch-with-my-feelings apologies, like, “I screwed up.” After all this, who’s surprised that he and the First Lady have to escape from the White House after only a few weeks in residence because they need a break. Now, the President claims the trillion dollar stimulus (filled with lots of juicy “pork”) is the only way to avoid economic catastrophe. I’m thinking if we can just get all the Democrats who owe back taxes to pay up, we’d be way ahead of the game.
From Rasmussen Reports:
The partisan debate over an economic stimulus package has pushed President Barack Obama’s Job Approval Ratings down over the past week. While the President continues to enjoy generally positive ratings, new survey data shows that the country is evenly divided over his assertion that failure to act on the stimulus package will lead to an economic catastrophe. See our weekly review of key polls to learn “What They Told Us.”
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Approval Index for Sunday shows that 36% of the nation’s voters now Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing as President. Twenty-five percent (25%) Strongly Disapprove to give Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of +11.
One week ago today, 44% Strongly Approved and 23% Strongly Disapproved to give Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of +21.
In the first set of interviews conducted after inauguration day, 45% Strongly Approved of his performance while 16% Strongly Disapproved for a Presidential Approval Index rating of +29 (see trends).
Here’s a biting summary in by Charles Krauthammer in the Washington Post:
After Obama’s miraculous 2008 presidential campaign, it was clear that at some point the magical mystery tour would have to end. The nation would rub its eyes and begin to emerge from its reverie. The hallucinatory Obama would give way to the mere mortal. The great ethical transformations promised would be seen as a fairy tale that all presidents tell — and that this president told better than anyone.
I thought the awakening would take six months. It took two and a half weeks.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not happy about this at all. Even though I didn’t vote for the man, I want America’s President to be successful. As the recent economic turmoil has shown, the world’s ups and downs are closely tied to the stability of the United States. I want a strong President who inspires confidence, knows which end is up when it comes to policy and economics, and can make tough decisions (like saying “no” to a Congress full of whiny politicians).