President Obama

What a difference 3 months have made in how the country views the job being done by President Obama. Here is the result of an averaging of 4 media surveys for October 2010 and January 2011.

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However, views about how Obama is dealing with the economy are basically unchanged during the same 3 month period. This is an average of 3 media surveys for January and October.

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Obama Approval Ratings

When matched against the approval ratings of the last 8 Presidents in February of the 3rd year of their initial terms in office, President Obama is number 6. [Based on Gallup surveys]

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Personal feelings about the President have also improved slightly over the last several months, but are almost exactly where they were a year ago.

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56% believe that Obama could be doing more on the economy. 39% say he is doing as much as he can. In March 2009, 30% thought he could be doing more. In February 2010, 50% said he could be doing more. [PEW 2/11]

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68% disapprove of Obama’s record on dealing with the Federal budget deficit. This is roughly the same number as those who held that view in February 2010 (64%). [Gallup 2/11]

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Since August of 2009, roughly 2/3rds of Americans have believed that Obama and GOP leaders were not working together. This month 65% hold that view. By 31% to 19% the public blames the GOP more than the President for this failure to get along. [PEW 2/11]

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45% believe that Obama shares their priorities for the country. 32% have that view about the Republicans in Congress, and 29% say that about the Democrats in Congress.

However, 58% of Independents do not think Obama has the same priorities for the country as they do. 56% have that view of the Republicans in Congress, and 66% say that about the Democrats in Congress. [CBS 2/11]

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When it comes to the budget deficit, 42% say they trust the President to make the right decisions about reducing the deficit. The same percentage have that view about the Republicans in Congress.

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The 2012 Presidential campaign is not just around the corner, but it is impossible to avoid the early machinations about who will be the Republican nominee. The list is too long, and evidence of who might be leading this pack of a dozen or more potential candidates is too sparse, to say much more.

President Obama will not be challenged for his party’s nomination.

Early polls mean little, but CNN/OR, in January, surveyed registered voters on their current intention to vote for the President’s re-election.



In a Gallup survey of registered voters in early February, 45% supported Obama and 45% supported a generic Republican candidate. Obama leads among women, nonwhites, those 18 to 34 years, and among Democrats. Independents split 41% to 41%. [Gallup 2/11]

Stay tuned.

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Republicans will gather for their convention in Tampa Bay, Florida, beginning on August 27, 2012. The Democrats will meet in Charlotte, North Carolina, starting on September 3, 2012.

If you have ever wondered whether selecting a particular city for a Party’s convention has any real impact on the outcome of the election, here is a partial answer.

Going back to 1936, Democrats have won the State in which their convention was sited 21 times. The Republicans have won the State in which their convention was sited 17 times. The next question is whether any of the victories or losses affected the ultimate result of the election. That question will likely be answered in a future edition of the Watch.

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