December 22, 2009 10:58 PM
President Obama
President Obama's overall job performance rating continues to decline.| NBC/WSJ | NYT/CBS | WP/ABC | |
| Obama overall job approval | |||
| February | 60/26% | 62/15% | 68/25% |
| April | 61/30% | 66/24% | 69/26% |
| June | 56/34% | 63/26% | 65/31% |
| July | 53/40% | -- | 58/37% |
| August | 51/40% | -- | 57/40% |
| September | 51/41% | 56/33% | 54/43% |
| October | 51/42% | -- | 57/40% |
| December | 47/46% | 50/39% | 50/46% |
In addition to the surveys above, the Gallup weekly average number for December 7-13 is 49%/42%.
When matched against the approval ratings of the last 8 Presidents in mid- December of the first year of their initial terms in office, Obama is now tied with Ronald Reagan for 8th/9th place on the basis of their approval ratings, and "1st," based on disapproval ratings. [Gallup surveys]
| Approve | Disapprove | |
| GW Bush (II) | 86% | 11% |
| Kennedy | 77 | 11 |
| G Bush (I) | 71 | 20 |
| Eisenhower | 69 | 22 |
| Nixon | 59 | 23 |
| Carter | 57 | 27 |
| Clinton | 54 | 40 |
| Reagan | 49 | 40 |
| Obama | 49 | 42 |
The following are selected demographic cuts of Obama's job approval ratings in the Gallup surveys in the 12/7-13/09 period.
| Approve | |
| Men | 46% |
| Women | 52% |
| 18-29 year olds | 59% |
| 65 years and older | 40% |
| White | 41% |
| Black | 70% |
| Hispanic | 64% |
| Democrats | 81% |
| Independents | 46% |
| Republicans | 18% |
| Liberal Democrats | 86% |
| Pure Independents | 41% |
| Conservative Repub | 11% |
| Married | 42% |
| Not Married | 59% |
| Weekly Church Att | 42% |
| Seldom/Never Att | 53% |
Here is how Obama is rated based on the two news sources.
| Total | Fox | Other | |
| Obama job approval | 47% | 15% | 59% |
| Obama job disapproval | 46% | 80% | 33% |
The December 13th WP/ABC survey recorded a 52% disapproval of Obama's performance on the economy. 46% approved. This was the first time that his performance on the economy has moved into negative territory.
The NBC/WSJ survey taken at roughly the same time found a similar shift. 51% disapproval and 42% approval. This was also the first time his disapproval score exceeded his approval score in this survey.
Obama does get positive ratings for his performance in foreign policy. 49% approve - 42% disapprove. More specifically, he gets a 46% approval - 42% disapproval score for his handling of the war in Afghanistan. [NBC/WSJ 12/09]
The President is seen as doing a better job than the Republicans in Congress on the economy, healthcare reform, Afghanistan, and energy policy. [WP/ABC 12/09]
19% of Americans are extremely confident that Obama has the right goals and policies to be President. 33% are not at all confident.
13% are extremely confident that the President has the right goals and policies to improve the economy, but 36% are not at all confident. [NBC/WSJ 12/09]
Here is how Obama is rated on his handling of the Federal budget deficit.
| Approve/Disapprove | |
| December 2009 | 37/56% |
| October | 45/51% |
| September | 39/55% |
| August | 41/53% |
| July | 43/49% |
| June | 48/48% |
| April 2009 | 51/43% |
| [WP/ABC] | |
Personal feelings about the President remain relatively high, with little change since the middle of the year.
| Positive | Negative | |
| December 2009 | 50% | 30% |
| October | 56% | 33% |
| September | 56% | 33% |
| August | 55% | 34% |
| July | 64% | 23% |
| June | 68% | 19% |
| April 2009 | 66% | 14% |
| [NBC/WSJ] | ||
As of the end of 2009, 32% of the officials that Obama has announced, nominated or had confirmed are women. This compares with 42% in the first year of Bill Clinton's Administration, and 26% in the first year of the Administration of George Bush II. [WashPost.com/headcount-2001 Brookings study]
Finally, in several recent December surveys, 50% or more disapprove of the way Obama in handling healthcare.
| Disapprove | Approve | |
| Washington Post/ABC | 53% | 44% |
| Fox | 54% | 39% |
| CBS/NY Times | 50% | 42% |
| Bloomberg | 53% | 40% |
| Quinnipiac | 54% | 38% |
