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Inside the Numbers [Dan Collins]

H/t Gerry G. and also taken up by Stacy McCain, this article from the WSJ:

It is simply wrong for commentators to continue to focus on President Barack Obama’s high levels of popularity, and to conclude that these are indicative of high levels of public confidence in the work of his administration. Indeed, a detailed look at recent survey data shows that the opposite is most likely true. The American people are coming to express increasingly significant doubts about his initiatives, and most likely support a different agenda and different policies from those that the Obama administration has advanced.

Polling data show that Mr. Obama’s approval rating is dropping and is below where George W. Bush was in an analogous period in 2001. Rasmussen Reports data shows that Mr. Obama’s net presidential approval rating — which is calculated by subtracting the number who strongly disapprove from the number who strongly approve — is just six, his lowest rating to date.

Overall, Rasmussen Reports shows a 56%-43% approval, with a third strongly disapproving of the president’s performance. This is a substantial degree of polarization so early in the administration. Mr. Obama has lost virtually all of his Republican support and a good part of his Independent support, and the trend is decidedly negative.

*****

All of this is not just a subject for pollsters and analysts to debate. It shows fundamentally that public confidence in government remains low and is slipping. We face the possibility of substantial gridlock along with an absolute absence of public confidence that could come to mirror the lack of confidence in the American economy that the Dow and the S&P are currently showing.

To the moon, Alice!

Some people believe that Obama was trying too much, too soon. So he’s decoupled the hopiness from the changiness.

Jeff Emanuel at RedState:

The utopian Left, which saw in the Rorshach that was candidate Barack Obama just what they wanted to see (rather than anything tangible or lasting) suffered yet another reality-based blow yesterday with the new administration’s claim in federal court that Guantanamo Bay detainees — also known as terrorists who would brutally murder every one of their Leftist defenders without breaking a sweat or losing their smiles — “do not have due process rights” afforded to Americans or civilized human beings as a whole.

There will be no cake.

88 Replies to “Inside the Numbers [Dan Collins]”

  1. Abe Froman says:

    Geez. Imagine if journalists weren’t all taking turns being Teleprompter Jesus’ fluffer?

  2. Joe says:

    When you ignore reality it tends to bite you pretty hard in the ass. Bush did that during the early Iraq occupation and it bit him in the ass. Obama is doing that now with his economic plans.

    And if Obama was focusing on the economy and really trying Keynesian economic, while many conservatives would disagree, Obama would have a lot more support. But he listened to Emanuel and Alexrod. And if he continues to do so he is fucked. Unfortuantely so are we.

  3. Eben says:

    As if low approval ratings have ever meant anything to agenda driven D.C. partisans.

    Do you think thieves and scoundrels care if everyone hates them?

  4. McGehee says:

    I recently recalled somewhere that Clinton’s job approval numbers were frequently touted despite his high personal negatives, and concluded that in this regard Obama is the anti-Clinton: he’s personally very popular but only an drooling idiot could possibly approve of his job performance so far.

    Which is not to say there aren’t plenty of drooling idiots around, but…

  5. urthshu says:

    I’m still uninformed and uninvolved. Oh, well. Back to my regular life.

  6. Randy says:

    I take it for granite that we’ll see deep-seeded again.

  7. MarkD says:

    It’s going to get ugly as soon as enough people figure out Obama stole their wallets to pay for the drinks he’s buying.

    I can probably be bought, or at least rented, but not with my own money.

  8. solitary knight says:

    I’d express my opinion here this morning, but I haven’t read all the polls yet, and, you know it’s hard to form an opinion without the right poll.

    But, if you insist, count me PRESENT. I feel better already, and I knew I would.

    Like pollen, hope is in the air. Can change be far behind?

  9. Bob Reed says:

    It shows fundamentally that public confidence in government remains low and is slipping. We face the possibility of substantial gridlock along with an absolute absence of public confidence that could come to mirror the lack of confidence in the American economy that the Dow and the S&P are currently showing.”

    Well there’s a real, ahem, surprise…

    Gee, I wonder how folks could be losing so much confidence in government, with all the hope-n-change going on in Washington..?

    Do ya think that it might have something to do with the perpetual assault on the government under Boooooooooosh!, during the never ending campaign of the last 8 years..? Or perhaps, that folks are seeing that Obama’s notion of Change! is really just hypocrisy, and that the only change is the signature of the person who’s arse happens to be in the big chair in the oval office..?

    Or maybe they’ve simply begun to realize that they’ve been had, Hoodwinked!, and Bamboozled! by the charlatan-in-chief…

    I don’t know for sure, but I do know that about the only Change! that’s really come to DC, according to my socialite friends in my former city, is that the Texas two-step has been replaced by the Chimperor ObaMugabe three-step; the new dance that’s all the rage…

    I Hope O! Fails!

  10. N. O'Brain says:

    “Polling data show that Mr. Obama’s approval rating is dropping and is below where George W. Bush was in an analogous period in 2001.”

    Ooooo, that’s gonna leave a mark.

  11. Carin says:

    Solitary, interpreting polls can be tough and best left to experts, solitary. It’s best to go see what they have to say regarding this manner on HuffPo. Lemme go check for yo u….

    humn … Screaming headline on Jon Steward attacking Cramer …. Dow opens up FOR FOURTH STRAIGHT DAY …. ANN Coulter’s book sales down … a coupla articles on Bristol Palin …

    Humn. Apparently this isn’t important.

  12. TheGeezer says:

    Partial cause of market rise?

    But on Thursday, after Republicans pounced on the possibility of a third stimulus package within a year and called for an independent audit of the current one to increase transparency, Pelosi stressed that another spending jolt is not in the works.

    True insiders would know such things in advance, allowing them to swoop in and thrash things a bit to harvest quick profits on the rapid rise and then, with shorts, the precipitous fall. This item might have sparked the surge of the last few days since less government spending and waste is good for the market.

    But long-term, the market will continue to drop, until Obama and ilk moderate the Democrat Party agenda.

  13. hf says:

    Hi eben! You is you, yes?

    About Obama, I’m just so disappointed is all.

  14. bill glass says:

    simply put, “approval ratings” is not the most accurate name but rather a term to describe overall media and news coverage -positive coverage or media coverage ratings…for bush, all the media was negative ( with few exceptions ) thus the numbers were low. john stewart is a complete phony, self-important, unfunny, cretin, what an ass.

  15. hf says:

    Urtshu has bst comment I think

  16. hf says:

    There is a glare on the berry

  17. pdbuttons says:

    oh..snap..
    i just polled myself
    trooly

  18. Log Cabin says:

    Yes, but did you hear that Rhianna went back to Chris Brown? That, and “Dancing with the Stars” won the ratings battle this week.

    That’s what’s important.

  19. happyfeet says:

    Drudge had that survey about how Boston teens say it’s all Rhianna’s fault cause she was asking for it. Boston teens aren’t that stupid I don’t think. I don’t believe it cause I mean yes Boston teens are stupid but not that stupid. Which isn’t to say Rhianna wasn’t asking for it but Chris should know that you’re not opposed to hit girls.

  20. pdbuttons says:

    chuck hallie berry haiku…

    go go go hallie
    go go go ‘go/go go….go
    hallie be goode/go

  21. pdbuttons says:

    g’wan
    get out…
    no way…

  22. Clint says:

    Rhianna needs to wake up and realize that that Chris guy is totally wrong for her and that it’s me she REALLY loves.

    Plus, I don’t hit girls. Unless they pay me for it… What?! I’m a fencing coach…

  23. Phil says:

    “Polling data show that Mr. Obama’s approval rating is dropping and is below where George W. Bush was in an analogous period in 2001.”

    Is it ok to call Teleprompter Jesus a MISERABLE FAILURE now or do I need to wait another week or so?

  24. pdbuttons says:

    rhiannon
    twirly dance
    she thought she was steve nicks
    i wanted to beat her

    ah..blowjobs…
    is there anytang they can’t do…
    her name was Denise….
    sweet

  25. pdbuttons says:

    her old man hated me!
    sweet!

  26. pdbuttons says:

    i wewnt ice skating
    in san diego
    i told her my name was
    bob
    robert
    gordon blowjob….
    yeah/ i said it
    look at me..
    i said it!

  27. cranky-d says:

    Is it ok to call Teleprompter Jesus a MISERABLE FAILURE now or do I need to wait another week or so?

    RACIST!!

  28. geoffb says:

    “simply put, “approval ratings” is not the most accurate name but rather a term to describe overall media and news coverage “

    We need a new rating that works along the line of the one where the “strongly disapprove” number is subtracted from the “strongly approve” one.

    Take the percentage that approve of the President and subtract from it the percentage of approving media pieces. Call it the media effectiveness rating.

  29. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    I don’t have a clue who this “Rhianna” person is, and have studiously avoided finding out.

  30. McGehee says:

    SBP, didn’t Stevie Nicks sing about her, years ago?

  31. TheGeezer says:

    Take the percentage that approve of the President and subtract from it the percentage of approving media pieces. Call it the media effectiveness rating.

    I like it. As long as it is positive, one gains a sense of media prejudice power. When it goes negative with a lightlifter like Obama in the White House, we’ll know we’re really screwed.

    Or at least more screwed than before, if that’s possible.

  32. Sdferr says:

    There seem to be many Rhianna’s running about in the world today. I’m with ya SBP. Here is another – Meghan McCain – oh!, and look over there, yet another – Squash.

  33. pdbuttons says:

    rhian-ion
    will u evah change

    i always thought lindey buck a fuck was a broad
    12ax7el…l6?
    twirly freezer ho-ho’s
    at ya

  34. pdbuttons says:

    look!
    limbaugh
    boogedy boo
    pick- a nose pete

  35. pdbuttons says:

    bobby

  36. pdbuttons says:

    orr

  37. McGehee says:

    BOOBIES!

    […]

    I’m sorry, is that not what pdb said? Dang, I do need new glasses.

  38. happyfeet says:

    Rhianna rings like a bell through the night if you hit her just right?

  39. pdbuttons says:

    bristol palin nod off girly hockey
    big titties forgives
    mcghee/u rock
    like nod off burritos dat froze
    the toes
    of nazi/bonaparte whores…
    zzzzz

  40. happyfeet says:

    oh. happyfeet that’s just tacky.

  41. pdbuttons says:

    clang clang clang
    goes the trolley
    to nowhere

  42. pdbuttons says:

    ring ring g’oes
    sammy davis’ nixons good ear
    tap tap

  43. George Orwell says:

    Let’s see. His Hooves, the Wonder Unicorn, began his adminstration with an executive order banning lobbyists from serving in the Exec. Branch. Except for the dozen or more that he waivered shortly thereafter. He brayed about the unsurpassed ethics of his new regime in the Oval Stables and how he was ready to hit the turf running. But seventeen slots in the Treasury department, requiring Senate confirmation, remain unfilled; many appointed to other positions can’t pass muster since His Hooves has a penchant for choosing tax cheats and the like. However, the biggest tax cheat of all is the ethically sparkling, intellectually dazzling Secretary of the Treasury, Doogie Howser. Lord Unicorn demanded swift passage for a spending bill larger than any in all of recorded history, and tripled the expenditures of government overnight. Immediately thereafter he declares that this is a new age of fiscal responsibility. For a blast from the past, consider how His Hooves gave a seminal, grandiloquent speech on race, defending his spiritual mentor of twenty years, Jeremiah Wright. Just a couple of weeks before His Hooves speechified again and told us Jerry wasn’t the man he knew, and it’s splitsville on that spiritual mentor thing.

    Today we learn that His Hooves believes, as he has said repeatedly for months, that all detainees at Gitmo require fundamental rights of due process. Except for all of the detainees at Gitmo.

    I declare, following the sterling, courageous example of our holy Unicorn of Balm, that it is the patriotic, sacred duty of every citizen to pay his fair share of taxes. With the exception of taxes for 2008, 2009 and future years to be determined.

    Honestly, if a nation wanted to prove to the world that its citizens are not only ignorant, but willing and eager to be duped and then say “thank you” for the deceit, it could not have done better than to elect Waffles, the Carbohydrate of Change.

  44. TheGeezer says:

    12ax7

    3-500Z!!!

  45. pdbuttons says:

    i declare…[fan fan airi;y[sp] fan]
    i gots the vapors…
    i’m turning japenese…
    u think?
    be..UUULL
    bondi…
    keep that fat ass outta deeeee
    troit

  46. TheGeezer says:

    Today we learn that His Hooves believes, as he has said repeatedly for months, that all detainees at Gitmo require fundamental rights of due process. Except for all of the detainees at Gitmo.

    With all the flip-flopping going on I’m beginning to feel like a horny salmon swimming upstream which has accidentally gotten onto a sandbar and which is struggling to get back into the swim.

  47. George Orwell says:

    The way to understand the ruckus and stench coming from the Oval Stables, and just what the fuck that Unicorn is doing there, is to remember that the whole point of this exercise is to let Barry play World Leader. The operative word here is “play.”

  48. rage virus says:

    Rasmussen Reports data shows

    exactly what Republicans want to be true in any given time frame. That is Scott Rasmussen’s primary function.

    Scott Rasmussen is an Evangelical Christian and is president of the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, a not-for-profit corporation with historic ties to the United Methodist Church and the Wesleyan tradition.

  49. Sdferr says:

    Oh, and that Doug Schoen guy, just ignore him, he’s not there.

  50. The Obvious says:

    Not only that the United Methodist Church is about as evangelical-fundamentalist as a bag of feathers.

  51. His Hooves, the Wonder Unicorn

    Great title, Mr. Orwell. So descriptive.

    It’s time for the progressives to cough up some answers. If Bush had made this number of mistakes one after another, the late night crowd would’ve gone nuts. The types of blunders are also ridiculous. Tax cheats, lobbyist appointments, basic protocol foul-ups.

    The Right will much sooner dissect a thorny problem, such as Steele or early Palin or domestic Bush-policy. The left is… delusional. In a way, it serves as their core strength. They only kick and beat someone as soon as they’re done with them, such as Hillary during the Primaries.

    Obama, Obama, Obama. A lonely nation turns its eyes from you. Mr. Mere Mortal.

  52. Silver Whistle says:

    George, that has put me off Skittles for life.

  53. Big D says:

    “Scott Rasmussen is an Evangelical Christian and is president of the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, a not-for-profit corporation with historic ties to the United Methodist Church and the Wesleyan tradition.”

    Oh noes! A Methodist? The horror!

  54. rage virus says:

    The Right will much sooner dissect a thorny problem, such as Steele or early Palin or domestic Bush-policy.

    Palin and Steele were only the latest examples of political calculations that failed.

    I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.

  55. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    Oh noes! A Methodist? The horror!

    They’re worse than Presbyterians, I hear.

    Not quite as bad as Baptists or Catholics, though.

  56. Gulermo says:

    O’Bamboozled! Heh.

  57. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    Palin and Steele were only the latest examples of political calculations that failed.

    Palin is the only reason that McLame got as many votes as he did.

  58. Big D says:

    “I will never understand…”

    You should probably leave it at that.

  59. Obstreperous Infidel says:

    “Palin and Steele were only the latest examples of political calculations that failed.”

    No, the political calculation that failed was John McCain.

  60. Obstreperous Infidel says:

    What’s to understand? McCain is an unserious politically spineless goof. The only thing that energized repubs was the inclusion of Palin, for whatever reason.

  61. pdbuttons says:

    hear ye hear ye
    palin is/was the only reason
    yeah’
    i Fucking sa=id it…
    bring it…
    i said it
    Palin rocks!
    i fucking said it twice!
    three lil gosh-darn pigs
    could not snout out my vote 4
    Pa=lin…
    get on the bus/
    i’m talking about us

    Team Sarah

  62. BJTexs says:

    There still seems to be a cadre of the willfully ignorant determined to swap mantles between McCain and Palin. Hello, people! McCain was the presidential candidate and he proved to be wholly uninspiring to the great, sainted, twitchy “middle” that by holy poll writ determines who wins elections.

    Or so I’m told, ad nauseum.

    Oh and that ginormous credit crisis 20 days before the election. But keep believing that moose hick baby dropping Palin was the real reason why McCain lost, if for nothing else than you’ll cease from blaming Bushhitler.

    Sometimes, the drive by cartoon that passes for critical thinking from a few of our visitors makes my head pound.

  63. Old Texas Turkey says:

    OI – forget the rage virus, it will mutate and attack itself shortly and cease to exist thereafter.

  64. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    I will never understand that argument.

    Hint: that would be because you’re stupid.

    Hope that helps.

  65. pdbuttons says:

    i’ve kinda calmed down
    but palin puts my frown
    upside down…
    and just when a
    i wanna
    drown/ that polar bear man pig wearing clown
    i reach across
    reach around..

    all we are saying….
    is give warm pee a chance…
    all we are swaying..

  66. dicentra says:

    From the cake link, ultimately from Wretchard: “When small things begin to loom large and truly momentous events are regarded with a dispassionate, almost distinterested attention, it is often a sign that leadership culture has lost its way.”

    They strain at a gnat and swallow a camel.*

    This is an ancient sign of trouble, but Obama isn’t the first to do this: our whole culture has been straining at gnats while swallowing camels for several years. Obama is just the culmination of this trend.

  67. SDN says:

    Yeah, rage virus, Methodists are such right wingers! Just ask Hillary Clintoon…. she are one.

  68. ushie says:

    I’m seriously considering limping around and screaming loudly at this point.

  69. Silver Whistle says:

    Is there a whiff of rotten parsnip in here?

  70. JD says:

    Silve Whistle – Are you suggesting that we can add rage virus to the list of alphtard/turnip/monkyboy/sniffles?

  71. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    Methodists are such right wingers! Just ask Hillary Clintoon…. she are one.

    Likewise George McGovern and John Edwards.

    Of course, if this is really nipply under a new nom de babillage, it probably considers those two to be members of the “Far Right”.

  72. Cave Bear says:

    Comment by SDN on 3/13 @ 2:10 pm #

    Yeah, rage virus, Methodists are such right wingers! Just ask Hillary Clintoon…. she are one.

    ***********

    So is The E-vil McChimpy Bushitler. Who’d a thunk it?

  73. Sdferr says:

    Pres. Obama has an almost uncanny ability, an ability scaling heights I don’t believe I’ve witnessed in my lifetime, to overpromise and almost immediately underperform.

    Yesterday, he assures us, he will work to end the business cycle. No more bubbles, no more busts. In light of generic frequently encountered warnings that past performance may not be indicative of future returns, I’m hereby committing to the hope that by his statement he does not intend to drive the economy so far down that the very possibility of growth fueling mistaken exuberance will forever be unthinkable.

  74. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    Next week he’s going to tackle those pesky Laws of Thermodynamics.

  75. Sdferr says:

    Heh.

  76. geoffb says:

    Hillary Clinton, George W. Bush, George McGovern, John Edwards, Scott Rasmussen, all Methodists. There has to be the makings of a good “conspiracy theory” in there somewhere.

  77. geoffb says:

    “Yesterday, he assures us, he will work to end the business cycle. No more bubbles, no more busts.”

    I think it is more that once you have everyone working for the State then these things become impossible. And if they do happen no one will report it so it’s, tree, falls, forest.

  78. alppuccino says:

    Before the election, when the stock market dropped, saying “the fundamentals of the economy are strong” was ridiculed. Today Obama said “the fundamentals of the economy are strong.”

    He is a lying piece of shit. He slept in an alley once. Fitting.

  79. happyfeet says:

    He lies. You know how freaking panicky that dipshit must be to say the thing about the strong fundamentals. He detests the fundamentals. Time to hoard shit I think.

  80. alppuccino says:

    He was explaining market volatility to a bunch of business execs. It was like watching Charlie Sheen explain the subtle pitfalls of a marriage to Ward and June Cleaver.

    Has anyone ever said they actually like this Obama guy, you know as a person? Doubt it.

  81. alppuccino says:

    Next week he’s going to visit a Mercedes plant and explain to them how an engine works:

    “The……uh………key……ahh……goes into the….uh…..keyhole aaaaaaaaaaand you uh…turn it, aaaaand…..it…uh goes rum rum.”

  82. Silver Whistle says:

    The writing style, the delusions of adequacy, JD – just smell it.

  83. Sdferr says:

    Mendoucious moronicity, yep.

  84. Rusty says:

    #79
    I thought that’s what global warming science was trying to debunk. Goddamn Maxwell. Always causing trouble.

  85. Spies, Brigands, and Pirates says:

    I hope that clears things up.

    Trollhammered. I hope that clears things up.

Comments are closed.