by Mark Silva
Here's yet another take on the public's measure of how well President Barack Obama has done in office as he nears his 100th day in office (April 29), with the Gallup Poll finding that 56 percent of Americans surveyed say Obama has done an "excellent or good job" so far - just 20 percent calling his performance "poor or terrible.''
The president has either met or exceeded the expectations of most people surveyed, Gallup and USA Today also report that they found in this 100-day assessment of the new president's track record, concluding that "Americans generally got what they expected'' with Obama.
There's a middle ground in this survey - those who say the president has done "just okay'' - and that is 23 percent of those surveyed. That makes the results of this survey look a little different than other recent public polls which have pegged the public's overall approval of the president's performance at between 63 and 65 percent.
The president's positive ratings tend more toward good (33 percent) than excellent (23 percent) in the Gallup survey, and the crowd saying terrible (11 percent) versus poor (9 percent) breaks fairly evenly.
"In the eyes of Americans,'' Gallup reports, "Obama's top achievement to date involves the U.S. economy -- whether the economic stimulus plan and industry bailouts, specifically, or improvement to the economy, generally. Restoring the United States' image abroad ranks a close second.... The worst thing Obama has done as president, according to the American public, is spend too much taxpayer money on bailouts, the budget, and the economic stimulus package.''
As in other surveys, the view of Obama is skewed by party affiliation, with 88 percent of the Democrats surveyed handing the president positive marks and Republicans less impressed - though 35 percent of the Republicans surveyed say Obama has done "just okay.''
This way of looking at the field provides "a more detailed picture of public reaction to the new president than Gallup's standard job approval rating.'' Gallup's Lydia Saad writes - noting that Gallup's latest tracking, from April 20-22, puts Obama's overall job approval at 65 percent, at the higher end of the three surveys about Obama's performance we told you about here yesterday.
"The new poll also finds that Americans generally got what they expected in the Obama presidency,'' Saad reports. " More than 6 in 10 - 62 percent -- say Obama has thus far done about as they expected as president, overall.
The bottom line:
The measures "confirm firm what his job approval ratings have been showing -- that he is well regarded and somewhat better reviewed at this early stage than the last Democrat to hold the office of president, Bill Clinton,'' Saad reports.
"The issues Obama gets the most credit and criticism on are the same: federal spending on the economic stimulus and bailout package, and his approach to dealing with national security threats, including leaders of unfriendly countries and the Guantanamo Bay prison.
The findings come from a survey of 1,051 adults conducted April 20-21, with a possible margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Comments
The American electorate received exactly what it wanted, in the November, 2008 elections. The removal of all things, Republican, or almost !! The job should be completed by the midterms, if the inept Republicans continue to flounder and spew, ridiculous charges and misstatements, sometimes, down right lies, against President Obama's policies !! They had 8 years to deny ex-President Bush and Cheney, their bumbling ways, but instead, chose to support them, from the Brutality in Baghdad, to the Incompetence and Malfeasance of the disaster in New Orleans, to the despicable treatment of our Veteran and their families, upon their return, from serving our country, in Iraq, and else where !!
What does President Obama do ? He tries, his best, to remedy a disappointed nation, an angry nation, with what he thinks will help us, to climb out of this Republican economic. moral and spiritual crater, these Republicans left America in, upon their exit from the national political stage !!
How is President Obama and his attempts, at a remedy, received ? He is received with more lies, more false charges and obstructionism. The Republicans have solidified, a united front, dedicated to the failure of the Obama administration and by extension, America. How is that for patriotism, how is that for non-partisanship, or statesmanship ? The goons still have control of, that once, great Party, and have reduced it to, a smear and fear machine, with former bomb-throwers and hangers-on, leading the charge !! When will the traditional, Republican Party retake the reigns of that historically-rich Party ? When they are tired of sitting on the sidelines, doing what they do best, at the moment, obstructing our government, from doing its job, to get America moving, again !!
SUPPORT OUR TROOPS, BRING THEM HOME, ALIVE AND WHOLE. NOW.
Posted by: Don Fitzgerald, America | April 24, 2009 8:16 AM
But what happened to the terrorists, black panthers, and Muslims we expected on his cabinet. Wm. Ayers and Jeremiah Wright aren't part of the admnistration? He hasn't introduced the Communist manifesto?
Posted by: John Birch | April 24, 2009 10:07 AM