Behind the Numbers: Presidential Approval


Posted at 12:17 PM ET, 04/10/2012

Romney winning struggling middle-class voters
By Scott Clement
Obama is stronger among voters who are “comfortable” or “moving up” from the middle class.

By Scott Clement  |  12:17 PM ET, 04/10/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  2012 polls, Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 12:17 PM ET, 04/10/2012

Ohio Sen. Rob Portman to stump for Romney in Pennsylvania on Thursday
By Scott Clement
The GOP rising star joins the presidential frontrunner for a campaign event in the Keystone State.

By Scott Clement  |  12:17 PM ET, 04/10/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  2012 polls, Barack Obama, Presidential Approval | Tags:  Mitt Romney, Rob Portman, Veepstakes

Posted at 02:48 PM ET, 03/22/2012

Poll watcher: More Americans spurn faith talk by politicians
By Scott Clement
Nearly four in 10 Americans now say politicians talk too much about religious faith, a sentiment that has spiked in recent years among Democrats and independents, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center.

By Scott Clement  |  02:48 PM ET, 03/22/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, 2012 polls, GOP nomination, Presidential Approval

Posted at 10:23 AM ET, 03/12/2012

Obama’s problem with non-college-educated white Americans
By Scott Clement
White Americans without college degrees soured sharply on President Obama in the past month according to the new Washington Post-ABC News poll, helping to stall a rise in his popularity and bring him back to parity in hypothetical contests against Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum.

By Scott Clement  |  10:23 AM ET, 03/12/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 06:23 PM ET, 02/15/2012

America: Religious and political outlier
By Scott Clement
Religion and politics collided once again this month as religious groups objected to requirements to provide contraceptive-covering insurance. America’s widely varying levels of religious commitment make the outcome of such firestorms hard to predict.

By Scott Clement  |  06:23 PM ET, 02/15/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  2012 polls, GOP nomination, International polls, Presidential Approval

Posted at 04:54 PM ET, 02/09/2012

Does the public blame banks for housing woes?
By Scott Clement
Most see banks at least partly responsible for the nation’s housing woes, but polls show they are far from the only culprits.

By Scott Clement  |  04:54 PM ET, 02/09/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Economy, Financial regulation, Presidential Approval

Posted at 07:23 PM ET, 02/01/2012

Does killing bad guys really help at the ballot box?
By Scott Clement
“For the first time in two decades, Osama bin Laden is not a threat to this country,” said President Obama the top of his State of the Union speech last week. Obama and his team clearly see eliminating bin Laden as a top administration achievement. But do Americans really reward at the ballot box presidents who take down their bogeyman?

By Scott Clement  |  07:23 PM ET, 02/01/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  International polls, Barack Obama, Presidential Approval, Voting

Posted at 12:17 PM ET, 01/30/2012

Poll watcher: Are capital gains tax rates popular?
By Scott Clement
A New York Times/CBS News poll shows a stark partisan divide on whether investment income should be taxed at a lower rate than ordinary earnings.

By Scott Clement  |  12:17 PM ET, 01/30/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Economy, Federal Budget Deficit, GOP nomination, Presidential Approval, Republican Party, Voting, methodology | Tags:  budget deficit, gop nomination, Republican Party

Posted at 03:37 PM ET, 01/24/2012

Obama’s report card from the public
By Scott Clement
President Obama received a decidedly mixed report card in a Washington Post-ABC News poll released last week.

By Scott Clement  |  03:37 PM ET, 01/24/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval, Congress

Posted at 02:06 PM ET, 01/18/2012

Poll watcher: Nuclear Iran a weak spot for Obama
By Scott Clement
President Obama’s most nagging challenge remains a persistently sluggish economy, but a new Washington Post-ABC News poll reveals a chink in his foreign policy armor less than 11 months before he faces voters: Iran’s nuclear ambitions.

By Scott Clement  |  02:06 PM ET, 01/18/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  International polls, Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 12:24 PM ET, 01/17/2012

Tea party opposed by half of Americans
By Scott Clement
Fully half of Americans oppose the tea party political movement in a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

By Scott Clement  |  12:24 PM ET, 01/17/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  2012 polls, GOP nomination, Presidential Approval, The Independents, Republican Party

Posted at 07:13 PM ET, 01/16/2012

Obama sub-50 to start year four
By Peyton M. Craighill
President Obama kicks off 2012 even-up on job approval in the new Washington Post-ABC News poll: 48 percent of Americans approve of the job he’s doing; 48 percent disapprove.

By Peyton M. Craighill  |  07:13 PM ET, 01/16/2012 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 12:45 PM ET, 12/12/2011

Poll watcher: Unemployment drop no salve for Obama
By Scott Clement
Fewer Americans are hearing negative news about the economy, but there’s no apparent benefit for broader views of the U.S. economy, or for President Obama.

By Scott Clement  |  12:45 PM ET, 12/12/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval, Economy, GOP nomination

Posted at 07:00 AM ET, 12/05/2011

Obama’s unemployment comeback?
By Scott Clement
Friday’s big drop in the unemployment rate to the lowest level since early 2009 comes as welcome news to President Obama, but are these numbers enough to bring him up from below sea level?

By Scott Clement  |  07:00 AM ET, 12/05/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Economy, Presidential Approval

Posted at 03:41 PM ET, 11/02/2011

Poll Watcher: Obama ratings rise may signal partisan shift; Iraq withdrawal and cell phone apps  
By Scott Clement
Quinnipiac University released a new poll Wednesday showing President Obama’s job approval up six points to 47 percent since early October.

By Scott Clement  |  03:41 PM ET, 11/02/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval, Iraq

Posted at 06:05 PM ET, 10/31/2011

Poll watcher: Iowa GOP race; do millionaires want a tax hike?
By Scott Clement
Herman Cain and Mitt Romney are close in Iowa, but Cain holds a 17-point edge among voters who “definitely” plan to vote in the January caucuses.

By Scott Clement  |  06:05 PM ET, 10/31/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, GOP nomination, Presidential Approval

Posted at 12:33 PM ET, 10/28/2011

Poll watch: Record low support for health reform, Obama economic ratings and the scariest polls
By Scott Clement
Today’s top polls: record low support for health care reform, ratings for President Obama and our scariest poll findings…

By Scott Clement  |  12:33 PM ET, 10/28/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Health care, Presidential Approval

Posted at 01:21 PM ET, 10/21/2011

Obama: Jack of the wrong trades?; poll spins message on jobs bill
By Scott Clement
Obama earns his highest poll marks as president on issues that rank among the least important to Americans.

By Scott Clement  |  01:21 PM ET, 10/21/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Economy, Presidential Approval

Posted at 04:23 PM ET, 09/15/2011

What Obama’s approval ratings can’t tell us
By Scott Clement
A review of Gallup year-out approval ratings seems to bolster the case for generalizing results of Tuesday’s GOP win and Obama’s low approval ratings to next year’s presidential contest.

By Scott Clement  |  04:23 PM ET, 09/15/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 12:21 PM ET, 09/13/2011

No quick bounce for Obama, but speech proposals seen as promising
By Scott Clement
President Obama's job approval rating received no immediate bounce following his prime time speech before Congress, but Americans do say several of his specific job proposals are promising.

By Scott Clement  |  12:21 PM ET, 09/13/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Presidential Approval, Economy

Posted at 12:05 PM ET, 09/12/2011

Pollwatcher: Republican nomination, Obama approval, Anthony Weiner seat, interracial marriage
By Peyton M. Craighill
Summary of daily polling.

By Peyton M. Craighill  |  12:05 PM ET, 09/12/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  GOP nomination, Barack Obama, Presidential Approval, Race

Posted at 09:15 AM ET, 09/07/2011

Obama hits new lows among strongest 2008 supporters
By Scott Clement
The president’s key base groups give him some of their lowest marks to date according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

By Scott Clement  |  09:15 AM ET, 09/07/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Presidential Approval

Posted at 01:19 PM ET, 08/29/2011

Pollwatchers: Favorable reaction to Libya, Obama’s sinking approval, federal government ranks last
By Peyton M. Craighill
Summary of daily polling

By Peyton M. Craighill  |  01:19 PM ET, 08/29/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 12:20 PM ET, 08/03/2011

Obama set to turn 50, with sub-50 approval ratings
By Jon Cohen and Scott Clement
President Obama turns 50 tomorrow, but a less enviable milestone awaits: absent a dramatic one-night upturn, Aug. 4 will mark 60 days with job approval ratings under 50 percent in Gallup daily tracking polls.

By Jon Cohen and Scott Clement  |  12:20 PM ET, 08/03/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Presidential Approval, 2012 polls

Posted at 12:00 PM ET, 06/08/2011

Poll: Rating President Obama, the good, the bad and the ugly
By Peyton M. Craighill
When asked what President Obama has done especially well and particularly poorly, a random snapshot of the American public offered some colorful responses in the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll.

By Peyton M. Craighill  |  12:00 PM ET, 06/08/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 01:35 PM ET, 05/31/2011

Poll Watchers: John Boehner, Mark Zuckerberg and Obama approval
By Scott Clement
A summary of daily polling.

By Scott Clement  |  01:35 PM ET, 05/31/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Barack Obama, Congress, Presidential Approval

Posted at 10:10 AM ET, 05/09/2011

Virginia poll: Obama’s fortunes improve post OBL, but economy still lingers as issue
By Peyton M. Craighill
President Obama gained an immediate boost in his job ratings in a new Washington Post Virginia poll after the killing of Osama bin Laden, but people remain concered about the economy.

By Peyton M. Craighill  |  10:10 AM ET, 05/09/2011 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Virginia, Barack Obama, Presidential Approval

Posted at 05:22 PM ET, 06/23/2009

Obama on the Issues
By Jennifer Agiesta
Public ratings of Pres. Barack Obama on the nation's top issues in the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll continue a pattern that has popped up in each of our polls since his inauguration in January: Obama's overall job approval is significantly higher than his ratings on individual issues. One month...

By Jennifer Agiesta  |  05:22 PM ET, 06/23/2009 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Presidential Approval, Presidential Approval

Posted at 04:45 PM ET, 01/18/2009

Bush Approval: A Last Look
By Jennifer Agiesta
As George W. Bush's final days as president dawn, a new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds him leaving behind one of the lowest final approval ratings in history and a wounded Republican Party. Bush's final approval mark stands at 33 percent in the new poll, above his career low of...

By Jennifer Agiesta  |  04:45 PM ET, 01/18/2009 |  Permalink  |  Comments ( 0)
Categories:  Presidential Approval, Presidential Approval