Poll: Majority of Americans See Barack Obama's Presidency as a Failure

52% say it's a failure, 42% say it's not. Geraghty digests a very tasty ABC poll.

Just 38 percent now approve of Obama's handling of international affairs, down 8 percentage points since July to a career low; 56 percent disapprove, a majority for the first time. Fifty-two percent say he's been too cautious in dealing with Islamic insurgents in Iraq and Syria. And the public is ahead of Obama in support for a military response to that crisis, with 65 percent in favor of extending U.S. air strikes to Syria.

At home, with Obama holding off his promised executive action on immigration reform, a new low of just 31 percent approve of his handling of immigration. Fifty-nine percent disapprove, up by a broad 18 points from spring 2013, when progress on the issue seemed imminent.

And Republicans have the edge as far as the generic ballot (at least with likely voters), 47-44.

The party has an advantage based just on Obama's failure.

Imagine if we had a sensible, appealing message to go with it.

Quinn Hilyer:

[A]ll Obama can do, when he is not greatly exacerbating whatever problem he chooses to create, is retreat further into his princeling world, hobnobbing with the rich and famous, shifting blame to everyone else, and acting as if somehow he wafts above the ordinary world of politics that in truth he has done so much to pollute.

Rather than leading from behind -- an absurdity -- he should leave behind the office that seems alternately to annoy and bore him. Let Joe Biden take responsibility; at least Biden engages rather than withdraws when the going gets tough.

Somebody needs to say it to his face: Barack Obama is the worst president, by far, since at least the Civil War. For the love of God, man, go away.

Update: Via @rdbrewer4, MRC reports that the TV newscasts largely refuse to inform the public about Obama's collapsing support.

Such coverage is in stunning contrast to how those same newscasts relentlessly emphasized polls showing bad news for George W. Bush during the same phase of his presidency. Media Research Center analysts reviewed every reference on the ABC, CBS and NBC evening newscasts to public opinion polls from January 1 through August 31, 2014, and from the same time period in 2006.

Eight years ago, the networks aired 124 evening news reports which cited public opinion polls about either President Bush's overall approval rating or his handling of specific policies. In 2014, those same broadcasts produced only nine reports which mentioned public opinion surveys related to President Obama.

posted by Ace at 01:54 PM

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