NYTimes Poll: Obama is building American's confidence

[MattusMaximus]

Outlook on Economy Is Brightening, Poll Finds

Some key points of the article...

... These sometimes turbulent weeks — marked by new initiatives by Mr. Obama, attacks by Republicans and more than a few missteps by the White House — do not appear to have hurt the president. Americans said they approved of Mr. Obama’s handling of the economy, foreign policy, Iraq and Afghanistan; fully two-thirds said they approved of his overall job performance.

By contrast, just 31 percent of respondents said they had a favorable view of the Republican Party, the lowest in the 25 years the question has been asked in New York Times/CBS News polls. ...

... the number of people who said they thought the country was headed in the right direction jumped from 15 percent in mid-January, just before Mr. Obama took office, to 39 percent today, while the number who said it was headed in the wrong direction dropped to 53 percent from 79 percent. That is the highest percentage of Americans who said the country was headed in the right direction since 42 percent said so in February 2005, the second month of President George W. Bush’s second term.

The percentage of people who said the economy was getting worse has declined from 54 percent just before Mr. Obama took office to 34 percent today. And 20 percent now think the economy is getting better, compared with 7 percent in mid-January. ...

... With the poll finding that an overwhelming number think the recession will last a year or more, Mr. Obama may find he has a deep well of patience to draw on. The poll found that he shoulders virtually none of the public blame for the economic crisis: 33 percent blame Mr. Bush, 21 percent blame financial institutions, and 11 percent blame Congress.

By more than three to one, voters said they trusted Mr. Obama more than they trusted Congressional Republicans to make the right decisions about the economy. And by more than two to one, they said they trusted Mr. Obama to keep the nation safe, typically a Republican strong suit. Nearly one-quarter of Republicans said they trusted Mr. Obama more than Congressional Republicans to make the right decisions about the economy. ...

Seems like very good news for Obama & the Democrats, and some pretty miserable news for the GOP. If Obama can keep helping people's confidence, then in the long run we'll get through this mess and come out stronger for it.

In keeping with my skepticism about polls, I'd like to see other polls on this same question. Has anyone seen any others?

 

[gdnp]

I agree with your assessment, but remember this is still the honeymoon. This recession probably has at least another year to run: the news will get worse before it gets better. If the Messiah can't prevent a depression despite trillion dollar budget deficits, if he can't deliver on health care reform, if gas prices shoot up again, if he pulls the troops and all-out civil war breaks out in Iraq, Obama's popularity could plummet.

 

[theprestige]

If Obama can keep helping people's confidence, then in the long run we'll get through this mess and come out stronger for it.

Our chances of getting out of this mess have less to do with our level of confidece on Obama, and more to do with whether or not his policies will actually get us out of this mess.

If you assume that his policies are good policies, then of course it's important for us to support those policies.

On the other hand, if you assume that his polices are bad policies, then the worst possible thing we could do would be to support them.

We know what your assumptions are. What is your reason for them?

 

[Upchurch]

I agree with your assessment, but remember this is still the honeymoon.

Really? I've been hearing that it was over starting days after the inauguration. And off and on for the weeks and months since.

How many honeymoons can one man have?

 

[ponderingturtle]

Really? I've been hearing that it was over starting days after the inauguration. And off and on for the weeks and months since.

How many honeymoons can one man have?

Are we talking a monogamous man or a polygamous man? I would think that the chinese emperors could have had a lot of honeymoons, the same with Pharaohs.

 

[MattusMaximus]

And don't forget teh gay marriage! Oh noes, we're all screwed!!!

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

 

[Upchurch]

Are we talking a monogamous man or a polygamous man?

To my knowledge, Obama is monogamous.

(Unless you count the semi-anonymous gay tryst with a moron cocaine user who can't get his stories straight and fails the sniff test in more than ways than one...)

 

[INRM]

Let's just hope he isn't building up confidence for some crap he's going to do somewhere down the road.

 

[Peephole]

I agree with your assessment, but remember this is still the honeymoon.

Ah yes, the honeymoon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDsl7OXK2WA

 

[dudalb]

Obama might be taking his first hit, and it is on the issue of piracy of all things.

 

[BeAChooser]

Outlook on Economy Is Brightening

Well if that's true, do we REALLLLY have to go ahead with plans to spend a trillion in stimulus dollars? Or can we just let the system recover like it has in every previous recession (without the porkulus spending)?

 

[Puppycow]

A) I don't think that people who support the Iraq war should complain about deficits.
B) This isn't like past recessions, it's more like The Great Depression.
C)

 

[mhaze]

Well if that's true, do we REALLLLY have to go ahead with plans to spend a trillion in stimulus dollars? Or can we just let the system recover like it has in every previous recession (without the porkulus spending)?

A trillion? which of the 12.8T obligated or spent do you refer to?e

 

[Upchurch]

Well if that's true, do we REALLLLY have to go ahead with plans to spend a trillion in stimulus dollars? Or can we just let the system recover like it has in every previous recession (without the porkulus spending)?

Ever thought that maybe that's what he's doing to build that confidence? You know, by actually doing something?

 

[BeAChooser]

A trillion? which of the 12.8T obligated or spent do you refer to?e

I haven't been able to get these liberals to discuss what obama is doing to the National Debt so I thought I'd see if they'd discuss the Stimulus pork.

 

[BeAChooser]

Ever thought that maybe that's what he's doing to build that confidence? You know, by actually doing something?

How come that wasn't needed in all the other recessions. Like the one in 1981-82 whose depth exceeded this one in indicator after indicator?

 

[BeAChooser]

Ever thought that maybe that's what he's doing to build that confidence? You know, by actually doing something?

And even if that was a confidence building move on his part (a misguided one), since things seem to be turning around on their own without the stimulus money actually being spent, can't we just save all that money rather than waste it in such a haphazard and inefficient manner?

 

[Dr Adequate]

How come that wasn't needed in all the other recessions. Like the one in 1981-82 whose depth exceeded this one in indicator after indicator?

You remember how you were wrong about that?

 

[Tricky]

While I won't claim that Obama deserves a lot of credit, he did do his job as Commander-in-Chief and let the Seals go after the Somali hijackers. But deserving or otherwise, stuff like this usually gives the Prez a bump in the polls. Certainly even sufferers from Obama Derangement Syndrome are going to have a hard time finding fault with this.

 

[Thunder]

I for one am very glad that Obama is President right now. I can't even imagine what this country would be like if McCain was President and Palin was VP.