How’s That Approval Thing Working?
This morning’s Rasmussen Report didn’t provide alot of relief to the Obama/Pelosi camp. President Obama’s approval rating is still in the crapper:
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Tuesday shows that 31% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Forty percent (40%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -9.
The news for Speaker Pelosi isn’t much better:
Lost in the uproar over a comment in USA Today by the top two House Democrats that those protesting health care reform are “un-American” were several statements aimed at assuring Americans that their access to quality care will be even greater. But new national surveying by Rasmussen Reports finds that voters are far from assured by the comments of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer in the same article.
Forty-five percent (45%) of voters nationwide think Pelosi and Hoyer are wrong when they say the passage of health care reform will mean more affordable coverage for all Americans. But 36% share the Democratic Congressional leaders’ view and believe health care will become more affordable if the plan passes. Eighteen percent (18%) are undecided.
As long as we’re talking polling, let’s highlight the unwanted trifecta:
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 42% would vote for their district’s Republican congressional candidate while 38% would opt for his or her Democratic opponent.
President Obama’s approval rating is bad, not just because his net is -9, but because 4 likely voters out of 10 strongly disapprove of his handling of his responsibilities. President Obama can’t afford for his disapproval ratings to get any higher because that 40 percent isn’t counting how many people somewhat disapprove of his handling of his presidential responsibilities.
The Democrats’ bad news isn’t just on one end of Pennsylvania Avenue. Almost half the people polled don’t believe Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader when they said “the passage of health care reform will mean more affordable coverage for all Americans.”
Finally, Republicans held their advantage in the generic ballot question for the seventh consecutive week, though their support dropped by a point from the previous week’s polling.
In short, this hasn’t been a good month for Democrats on a variety of fronts. The thing that’s most harmful to the Democrats is that people don’t trust the things they’re saying. The other thing worth factoring in is the fact that Pelosi is too much an ideologue to change directions in any meaningful way. She’ll keep forcing Democrats into tough vote after tough vote. She’s written her script and she’s sticking to it.
Technorati Tags: Polling, Generic Ballot, President Obama, Speaker Pelosi, Steny Hoyer, Health Care, Job Approval, Democrats
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog