jetblasted wrote:President Obama's slow ride down Gallup's daily presidential job approval index has finally passed below Jimmy Carter, earning Obama the worst job approval rating of any president at this stage of his term in modern political history.
Since March, Obama's job approval rating has hovered above Carter's, considered among the 20th century's worst presidents, but today Obama's punctured Carter's dismal job approval line. On their comparison chart, Gallup put Obama's job approval rating at 43 percent compared to Carter's 51 percent.
Back in 1979, Carter was far below Obama until the Iran hostage crisis, eerily being duplicated in Tehran today with Iranian protesters storming the British embassy. The early days of the crisis helped Carter's ratings, though his failure to win the release of captured Americans, coupled with a bad economy, led to his defeat by Ronald Reagan in 1980.
According to Gallup, here are the job approval numbers for other presidents at this stage of their terms, a year before the re-election campaign:
-- Harry S. Truman: 54 percent.
-- Dwight Eisenhower: 78 percent.
-- Lyndon B. Johnson: 44 percent.
-- Richard M. Nixon: 50 percent.
-- Ronald Reagan: 54 percent.
-- George H.W. Bush: 52 percent.
-- Bill Clinton: 51 percent.
-- George W. Bush: 55 percent.
I am curious were these figures came from. What is the cite?
Assuming arguendo, and depending on who did the poll and exactly how it was conducted (particular question(s) asked; possibility of inherent bias; whether the pollees were truly a statistically fair representative class of highly probable 2012 voters; etc.; etc.), the results may not be accurate. On the other hand they may be. How can we mere citizens tell on our own?
Anyhow, I have really ever only trusted two sources for presidential polling data and interpretation. I prefer data from The University of Michigan Survey Research Center and the seemingly unbiased interpretation by David Broder, deceased.
At this point, I don't care who wins for the R's- Romney and Gingrich don't please me. Neither does Obama for that matter.It will be the lesser of two evils for me once again.
Anyhow, I would bet the polling on Obama is suspect because the R's are out there debating every week and are getting the aggregate vast majority of media attention right now. Their campaigns are in high gear. Obama is not. Lets wait until after both conventions, when the polling data will be far more dependable.
In the meantime, it seems form this poll that Obama might be in deep trouble. On the other hand, look at how he came through at the end and clobbered Hillary in their primaries.
I wish the D's would run Hillary!!!