Paul Revere by Cyrus Dallin, North End, Boston

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Tuesday, December 9, 2008

SO FAR, PRETTY DAMN GOOD!


Contrary to the blogs that have been beating the birth certificate non-story to death, a majority--a very healthy, large majority of the American people--are pleased with President-elect Obama.


He's on a honeymoon and he isn't even in the White House yet. But, as Bill Schneider remarked, that's because the country is reeling from the disaster that's been in the WH for 8 years.


This high approval rating won't last forever, as we well know, but it sure feels wonderful in an economic season with very little to feel wonderful about.


December 9, 2008
Obama honeymoon continues, poll shows

From

Obama is enjoying a nearly 80 percent approval rating.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – A new national poll suggests that Barack Obama's having one heck of a honeymoon.


Nearly eight in ten Americans questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey out Tuesday morning are giving the president-elect the thumbs up when it comes to his handling of the transition. Seventy-nine percent approve of Obama's performance so far during transition, with 18 percent disapproving.


Obama's approval rating is "14 points higher than the approval rating for president-elect Bush in 2001 and 17 points higher than president-elect Clinton's rating in 1992," CNN Polling Director Keating Holland noted.


The president-elect's current approval rating is also more than 50 points higher than Bush's current approval rating, which now stands at 28 percent, with 71 percent disapproving of the way Bush is handling his job as president.


"An Obama job approval rating of 79 percent! That’s the sort of rating you see when the public rallies around a leader after a national disaster. To many Americans, the Bush Administration was a national disaster," says CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider.


The poll also indicates that 79 percent of the public thinks Obama will do a good job as president. That's up 4 points from last month. Eighteen percent think Obama will do a poor job as president, down 3 points from November.


Seventy-eight percent of those questioned feel Obama will be a uniter, 20 points higher than those who felt the same way 8 years ago about then-president-elect Bush. Twenty percent say Obama will be a divider, 16 points lower than those who said Bush would be a divider.


"Bush came in promising to be a uniter, not a divider. That’s a promise Bush failed to deliver – as he himself acknowledged last week in an interview with ABC news when he said that one of his big disappointments is that the tone in Washington got worse rather than better. Nearly 80 percent describe Obama as a uniter. So far, so good," said Schneider.


Seventy-six percent of those polled have a favorable opinion of Obama.


"And the president-elect is not the only one who is popular right now. Sixty-seven percent have a favorable view of Michelle Obama and 56 percent have a positive view of Vice President-elect Joe Biden ," Holland added.


And the Democratic party continues to be much more popular than the GOP. Six in ten have a favorable view of the Democratic party, while a majority have an unfavorable opinion of the Republican party.


The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll was conducted December 1-2, with 1,096 adult Americans interviewed by telephone. The survey's sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

30 comments:

dmarks said...

"But, as Bill Schneider remarked, that's because the country is reeling from the disaster that's been in the WH for 8 years."

I did not know much about Schneider before, but now I know he is a strongly left-wing commentator. Coming from this bias, he is way off. IT is like he wanted to get in a bit of mindless Bush-bashing which is really unrelated to how the President-Elect has been conducting himself since he won election.

The reason Obama gets high marks is because he is appointing relatively-moderate experienced pragmatists to his new cabinet, and he seems to be doing a lot to prepare him for his new job.

"Contrary to the blogs that have been beating the birth certificate non-story to death"

This is the only blog where I have found the story.

Anonymous said...

"Bush came in promising to be a uniter, not a divider. That’s a promise Bush failed to deliver – as he himself acknowledged last week in an interview with ABC news when he said that one of his big disappointments is that the tone in Washington got worse rather than better."

That you consider Bill Schneider a' strongly left-wing commentator' (laughable really as there are no real leftists on television, cable or broadcast) seems reason enough to ignore the truth of this statement.

Did Schneider get the quote wrong?

No he didn't.

dmarks said...

Schneider inserted a left-wing biased comment of is own opinion of the Bush Administration.

I had no opinion of Schneider until I read this statement of his in which he expressed his own strongly biased political opinion. I had to look up who he was, in fact.

If you measure from the center, there are many left-wingers (left of center) on television, just as there are many right-wingers. It is laughable to deny this.

Shaw Kenawe said...

dmarks,

Here are three rightwing blogs that carried the story of the birth certificate (and there are more):

Atlas Shrugs:

http://atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com/atlas_shrugs/2008/12/birth-certifi-1.html

maries two cents, a far right conservative blog:

http://mariestwocents.blogspot.com/2008/12/democrat-asks-supreme-court-to-halt.html#links

gateway pundit:

http://gatewaypundit.blogspot.com/2008/12/supreme-court-refuses-one-obama.html#links

dmarks said...

Shaw: Thanks! I did not doubt you that there were a bunch of blogs buzzing about it, including rightwing blogs who saw it as the great white hope of knocking out Obama's presidency. I just read yours, instead of them, however.

dmarks said...

(And about Schneider's comment, I'd consider a commentator right-wing if they called Clinton's or Carter's administrations "disasters" during a news report.)

Shaw Kenawe said...

Speaking of disasters, the reports of the corrupt, disgusting, poor excuse for a politician, Governor Blagojevich is a perfect example of a disaster.

dmarks said...

Too bad this was cut short before he had a chance to put Obama's Senate seat on eBay.

Anonymous said...

dmark-

Nope.

You are ever so eager to find that all pervasive left-wing bias. And exaggerate when it doesn't quite suit your purpose.


Shaw typed:


'He's on a honeymoon and he isn't even in the White House yet. But, as Bill Schneider remarked, that's because the country is reeling from the disaster that's been in the WH for 8 years.'

Which you attributed to Schneider.


What Schneider actually said was:

"An Obama job approval rating of 79 percent! That’s the sort of rating you see when the public rallies around a leader after a national disaster. To many Americans, the Bush Administration was a national disaster," says CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider.

Not the same thing as Shaw wrote.

For a great many Americans eight years of George are indeed a disaster.

dmarks said...

@arthur: "You are ever so eager to find that all pervasive left-wing bias."

I only find it where it exists. And I do not find it where it does not exist.

@arthur "And exaggerate when it doesn't quite suit your purpose."

Nope. Nothing comes even close to your claim that there weren't left-wingers on TV media. That is beyond exaggeration.

@arthur: "Which you attributed to Schneider."

Actually. Mr. Kenawe did the attributation in his paragraph. "But, as Bill Schneider remarked, that's because the country is reeling from the disaster that's been in the WH for 8 years"

No exaggeration there.

Shaw Kenawe said...

dmarks,

Just to let you know, since you're a frequent visitior to PE, I'm a Ms. not a Mr.

I adopted the blognym in 2003 at the beginning of the Iraq war. It's a play on word for Shock and Awe.

And I definitely has a left-wing bias, because as Steven Colbert has said, "truth has a liberal bias."

dmarks said...

Ms. Shaw,
Sorry about that. I had the impression "Shaw" was a male first name. I remember the source. There also was a country singer who adapted the phrase to "Shockin' Y'all" also.

Yes, Colbert sometimes says hilarious satirical things.

Handsome B. Wonderful said...

I've read that some liberals are annoyed with Obama's cabinet positions because they aren't left enough. I think it's wise to pick the people who are best suited for the job regardless if they are uber-leftists or not.

A good president rules from the middle and knows how to bring people along from the other side to bring about legislation instead of gridlock, which is what would happen if he picked extreme lefties.

Shaw Kenawe said...

handsome,

I agree. I think Obama's doing quite well in his choices for his cabinet. We can't afford to be as polarized as we have been under the Bushies.

I hope we've seen the end of divisive Rovian politics and the poison it has created in this country.

Anonymous said...

dmarks typed:

Actually. Mr. Kenawe did the attributation in his paragraph. "But, as Bill Schneider remarked, that's because the country is reeling from the disaster that's been in the WH for 8 years"

By golly you're set in your ways.

Mr. Kenawe is actually Ms. And the fact she mis-attributed a quote you gleefully repeat after being corrected says volumes. About you.

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Say something often enough and it takes on the ring of truth. Now in the great scheme of things this discussion accounts for not much at all but it underscores an unhealthy obsession of ignoring inconvenient facts.

And if you re-read this thread I never wrote there is an absence of leftist bias in some media. I did write that a great many folks, you included, see it where it isn't and in the field of commentary ('I know he is a strongly left-wing commentator'), it's totally a non-issue.

Commentary is opinion. But you would have us believe that all of the media (like Fox for example) blurs boundaries between commentary and reportage all the time.

Nope. Not even close.

dmarks said...

Arthur: Ms. corrected me already, thank you very much. And who is "Set in their ways"? I think it is you, when you are trying to make a sentence say something it is not saying at all.

"And if you re-read this thread I never wrote there is an absence of leftist bias in some media."

You referred to television, specifically, and that is where I kept the subject. You did specifically say "there are no real leftists on television, cable or broadcast".

"Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Say something often enough and it takes on the ring of truth."

I'm glad I started with something that was true. I only had to repeat it due to your insistence on something other than what was true.

"ignoring inconvenient facts."

And then you throw a wild accusation in there that is a non-sequitur.

"Commentary is opinion. But you would have us believe that all of the media (like Fox for example) blurs boundaries between commentary and reportage all the time."

I never said that. Or anything like that. I was referring specifically to the Schneider quote that painted him as a left-wing commentator. I never said anything general about anyone. Go ahead. You can't find it.

However, what you said is true. The boundaries are blurred. Perhaps nonexistent. Reporters show bias from the start by what they choose to report on or not report on.

dmarks said...

Shaw: So do you think Blago will pull a Spitzer and get out soon, or be like Sen. Stevens and endeavour to hang in there as long as he can and trash the Illinois governorsip as much as possible?

Shaw Kenawe said...

dmarks,

There's a very powerful and popular politician from Illinois, who just won a significant election on Nov. 4.

I'm hoping that he or his staff will "suggest" to Blogo that he resign from the governorship so that he can spend more time with his family (and probably his lawyer.)

These sort of scandals depress me. And I don't believe Repubs are any more corrupt than Dems. Sadly, it seems that too often politics brings out the worst instead of the best in people.

In fact, I just heard that P-e Obama has called for the "bastid" to resign.

When Tom DeLay was indicted for his actions, I remember how President Bush stuck up for him and didn't condemn him.

Clearly, an accused is supposed to be innocent until proved guilty, but it's difficult to maintain that noble idea after listening to what Blogo has said.

Alaska Sen. Steven's corruption didn't seem to tarnish Gov. Palin's reputation, even though she was a supporter of his early in her career, so I don't think the fact that Obama had an association with Blogo should hurt him either.

I've also heard reports that it was Obama's insistence on the passage of an ethics bill in the Illinois state legislature three months ago that led to Blogo's arrest.

dmarks said...

"Clearly, an accused is supposed to be innocent until proved guilty, but it's difficult to maintain that noble idea after listening to what Blogo has said."

The "innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law" thing applies to the criminal justice system. A standard before someone can be punished by government.

The rest of us acting as private individuals (or party bosses) are free to evaluate the information and say what we want, and act accordingly as much as we are legally allowed. Especially when the facts are so overwhelming.

President-Elect Obama has seen the overwhelming facts, and he has a lot of clout in Illinois politics and the Democratic Party, so he might be able to stop Blago from disgracing the office any longer. Once out of office, Blago will be free to disgrace himself further, but he won't be trashing the Office of the Governoer of the State of Illinois anymore.

There's a long list of those who are actually guilty (that is, they did what they were accused of) even though they were not found guilty in a court of law).

Gordon Scott said...

Anyone who's watched Bill Schneider over the years should be able to reasonably conclude that he comes at issues from a definite left-of-center point of view. He's not as far out as Keith Olberman, however.

And President Bush supported Tom DeLay on the charges because the prosecutor, Ronnie Earle, ran some pretty dubious charges past three grand juries before he managed to get a true bill. That's fairly amazing in this day and age when a prosecutor can usually get a grand jury to indict anyone.

But I can't see giving Obama credit for the charges against the governor because,
A: As a US senator, he can ask all he wants, but he has no ability to get anything passed through the Illinois senate. It's also a bit much to believe that he was influencing state legislation while furiously campaigning for president.
B: Blagojevich was charged in federal court, not state court. An Illinois ethics law would be enforced in state court.

Shaw, I'd wondered what the blogonym meant. Thanks for letting me know.

And yes, I think we've seen the end of Rovian divisive politics. We're going to see pretty soon what the nature of Axelrodian politics will be.

Anonymous said...

"SO FAR, PRETTY DAMN GOOD!"

You got to be kidding!
But, B. Hussein will assume the "what, me worry" attitude and the lame-stream media will give him a pass.

His greatest power is his ability to “cloud men’s minds”. He can hypnotize people instantly so that he can move as an invisible shadow. He can also hypnotize people so they forget things or to command them to perform certain acts (he once forced a criminal to write a detailed account of his past crimes). The Shadow wears a fire opal ring known as a girasol on his hand which he uses to focus his hypnotic abilities. He is an expert in many different languages and is also a master ventriloquist (he can project or “throw” his voice).

He is also a master of disguise and has been known to impersonate others, even fooling their friends and family members. The Shadow is apparently an expert aircraft pilot and skilled in infiltration and information gathering techniques due to his experience as an intelligence agent

dmarks said...

By the way, doesn't that "The Shadow" movie trailer in theatres look awful?

Shaw Kenawe said...

Dear Shadow,

There are all sorts of meds out there to deal with your paranoia. I'm sure your healthcare provider would be eager to get you started so you can be on your way to recovery very soon.

Yes. Barack Obama's middle name is Hussein. His mother and father gave it to him. Imagine that. Here's a bit of history for you:

When Abraham Lincoln was running for president, lots of people made fun of his first name, and they made fun of how he looked. Imagine that.

And here's what I imagine: That you and people like you would probably have been among those who sneered at Abraham Lincoln's name and at what he looked like.

Congratulations. You're just like those goofballs who scorned and made fun of our greatest president.


PS. I have a hunch that even if Barack Hussein Obama's name were Thomas Adams Washington, you'd still dislike him.

Barack Hussein Obama, the 44th President of the United States of America.

Man. That has such a nice ring to it, n'est pas?

Anonymous said...

Whatever floats your boat

Anonymous said...

Send in the clowns...

He's already here, going by the name of "President Elect.

Shaw Kenawe said...

Oh please, Pussy Galore,

Can't you be more original than that? Although I've heard that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery--thanks for the compliment.

You guys need some serious training in ridicule and satire. (I recommend the divine Oscar Wilde.)

Those two rhetorical devices will help you get through the coming years as the Democrats' Fabulous, Wonderous Leader, Barack Hussein Obama, takes over the White House, and the Senate and the House of Representatives and, be still my heart, get to nominate new justices for the SCOTS as the older ones retire, or (gasp!) die.

Christmas truly, truly came early to us this year.

So sorry, Pussy Galore, about that coal in your stocking.

dmarks said...

Shaw: Not only that, but "Hussein" is the name of a dynasty of two kings of Jordan, both of which were/are pretty decent fellows as far as monarchs go.

That would make the Hussein name have a positive association.

Pussy: I am having trouble picturing Obama with a big red nose, whiteface makeup, and giant shoes.

Anonymous said...

Whith your guy Barack Obama in office I'm affraid that we will be tested by the religion of peace again. I know there are people like YOU who say..
Get on with your life - This will absolutely not happen again, . Forget about it, shut up about it and not take any action? That will result in a "second time around", and next time, it could be you or me being blown up or jumping out of a window and splattering all over the ground.

We shouldn't haphazardly blanket bomb various countries, but something has to be done. Previously we limited our actions, and that has not stopped terrorism, since we did nothing to make other countries fear doing anything to us because of the resulting retaliation. Yes, countries, because these countries protect these fringe groups, and these countries celebrate our devastation. Even finding Bin Laden and punishing him will not stop other groups from doing something like this again - or something worse. We "punished" Saddam Hussein, right? Yet even the Gulf War did not scare off Saddam - after all, he most likely helped fund this recent attack. This isn't the result of Bin Laden and a few followers who, if found and eliminated, would end the incredible threat of terrorism we live under. This is the result of more people than we can imagine - a "few people" from a fringe group can't plan out something like this - it takes years, resources, planning, and many, many people. I am not a pro-war fanatic, but unless we do something drastic, we'll see these events play out again and again. And, without seeing those images -- the images of piles of rubble where the twin towers used to stand, images of devastated families, images of rescue crews working without sleep in the hopes of finding just one more survivor -- as we go on with our everyday lives, we will become complacent, just like before. Complacency can destroy us, such as the complacency which lead to the halting of a project a few years ago that would detect explosives at Logan airport. There are reports that a terrorist went through that very airport on September 11 with C4 strapped to him - C4 which would have been detected if the project had not been scrapped.
I don't expect everyone to agree with me, and I don't expect to change minds. That being said, perhaps even writing this is somewhat illogical, but with Obama in office I do feel that way.
The one thing that anyone has to say about Bush is that he kept us safe.
I don't want a next time when it's a plane my family is on that is used as a missile. No one can guarantee that there will never be a "next time" but I want to make damn sure we do what we can to prevent a "next time." And with Barack Obama in office.... I'm not feeling too safe.

Anonymous said...

The folks who throw Obama's middle name 'Hussein' into the mix do not do so for the positive association with the late King of Jordan. Most probably couldn't find Jordan on the map let alone know who King Hussein was or anything about the Hashemite dynasty.

Nope. Hussein sounds 'foreign', particularly Muslim and to that crowd that association is perfectly clear.

Shaw Kenawe said...

Me, Myself and I,

The worst attack on American soil happened during the Bush administration. And except for the terrorist attack of anthrax, where a number of people DIED, nothing else on American soil. There were other terrorist attacks in the world, however.

Those two terrorist actions on American soil happened on GWB's watch.

You're already deciding you don't feel safe with Barack Obama, and he's not even president?

Take a deep look into that logic. There is none, except your dislike of him because he's not a conservative.

Even if we DO have another attack--Darwin forbid--Barack will still be one less attack even with George W. Bush.

Bush had TWO terrorist attacks on American soil while he was president.

But most conservatives are mentally challenged and don't remember that.