Poll: Obama's approval rating rebounds in Florida

I'm starting to get the vibe that the GOP might be a bit disappointed this fall. I really like the way it seems the Tea Baggers are getting split.

(CNN) - President Obama's approval rating in Florida is on the rise, according to a new poll.

A Quinnipiac University survey released Monday indicates that 50 percent of Florida voters approve of the job that Obama is doing in the White House, up five points from January, with 45 percent saying they disapprove, down four points from the beginning of the year.

The increase might have been caused by a four percent uptick in Obama's approval rating among independent voters since January. Forty-eight percent of independents now give the president a thumb's up, with 46 percent saying they disapprove, the poll shows.

Obama's recent call for increased offshore oil drilling appears to be popular with Floridians: 64 percent say they're OK with drilling off the Florida coast.

But, according to the poll, health care reform is not nearly as popular, with 48 percent saying they disapprove of the plan and 44 percent saying they support it. Forty-nine percent say they disapprove of how the president has handled health care, and 44 percent say they approve.

Poll: Americans more optimistic about the economy

Getting there.

Washington (CNN) - Americans appear slightly more optimistic about the economy than they did at the start of the year, according to a new national poll.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Friday morning indicates that 19 percent of the public now says that an economic recovery is underway.

"While that's not a great number, it's significantly higher than the 12 percent who felt that way in January," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.

Thirty-four percent of people questioned in the poll says the economy is still in a downturn, but that's dropped five points from the 39 percent who felt that way at the start of the year.

According to the survey, nearly half the public says that a recovery has not started but that conditions have stabilized. The 46 percent who said the economy's stabilized is down three points from January.

CNN Poll: Obama approval up in wake of health care victory

Really no substantive change, just hovering around the general 50% mark, which is something to be impressed by.

Washington (CNN) – Passage of the landmark health care bill appears to have boosted President Barack Obama's approval rating, but it has not affected his re-election chances so far, according to a new national poll.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Monday indicates that 51 percent of Americans approve of the job Obama is doing in the White House, with 48 percent saying they disapprove. That 51 percent approval rating is up five points from a week ago, before Congress approved the health care reform bill and the president signed the legislation into law. Four in ten respondents say they disapprove because Obama is too liberal and 6 percent say they the president is not liberal enough.

Full results (pdf)

Eighty-six percent of Democrats questioned say they approve of the job Obama is doing, a surge of 12 points over the past week. The poll indicates that 47 percent of Independents approve of the president's performance, up 6 points in a week, and 12 percent of Republicans give him the thumbs up, basically unchanged from a week ago.

CNN Poll: 6 point jump in support for health care bill

The GOP Media will glom on to the fact that the majority of the surge is in D's, but that was also the majority of the people who were naysaying before, so screw them.

Washington (CNN) - Support for the health care reform bill that Democrats are pushing through the Senate has risen six points since early December, according to a new national poll, and although a majority of Americans still oppose its passage, only four in ten agree with Senate Republicans that the bill is too liberal.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey, released Monday, also indicates that President Barack Obama's approval rating has experienced a similar six-point rise.

According to the poll, 42 percent of Americans, based on what they've read or heard about the bill, support Senate Democrat's legislation. That's up from 36 percent in a poll conducted December 2-3. Nonetheless, a majority of people questioned in the survey, 56 percent, oppose the bill.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll was conducted Wednesday through Sunday, as Senate Democrats were negotiating a final health care bill, but before a crucial party-line vote early Monday morning to end debate, a huge hurdle to eventual passage of the legislation that the Democrats successfully were able to jump.

"Virtually all the increase in support for the Senate health care bill has come from Democrats, with a 10-point increase since early December," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Support is also up 10 points among younger Americans, compared to only two points among people 50 and older."

CNN Poll: More Americans are saying that things are going well

Wow, I would have never thunk this from everything I'm hearing this morning. All the talking heads are sounding like Obama is about to be dragged out of the White House and put on trial for being "ineffective", "unsubstantial" and just a plain old loser.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - The number of Americans who think things are going well in the country today is at its highest level in two years, according to a new national poll.

Thirty-seven percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Tuesday night say that things are going very well or fairly well in the country. That's the highest number since November 2007, just before the official beginning of the current recession. It also represents a 7-point gain since August and a 12-point gain since October of last year.

President Obama's Approval One Year Later

So, with all the horrid crap that's been going on he still is just as popular as he was the day he was elected. Not bad.

A year after he won the presidential election, 54% of Americans approve of the job President Obama is doing, according to a new CNN/Opinion Research survey.

Said pollster Keating Holland: "Obama's approval rating of 54 percent is nearly identical to the 53 percent of the vote he won a year ago. And in nearly every demographic category, the percent that approve of Obama today is within two to three points of the percent who voted for him in 2008."

CNN Poll: 6 in 10 back 'cap and trade'

6 in 10, 6 in 10... I think they also call that a majority. Funny, that's totally the opposite from what I've been hearing all morning on MJ about this being a center right country.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - Six in 10 Americans support a "cap and trade" proposal to cut pollution, according to a new national poll.

Sixty percent of those questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey say they favor "cap and trade," a Democratic sponsored plan in which the federal government would limit the amount of greenhouse gases that companies could produce in their factories or power plants. Thirty-seven percent oppose the proposal, which would penalize companies that exceed greenhouse gas limits with fines or by making those businesses pay money to other companies that producer smaller amounts of pollution.

Full results (pdf)

(snip)

The survey indicates a generational divide, with 68 percent of Americans under age 50 supporting "cap and trade" but those 50 and older split on the issue.

"This is one more example of the growing generation gap that is shaping politics and policy in this country," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Younger Americans voted for Obama and tend to welcome change. Older Americans were less enamored of change in the 2008 election and senior citizens were the only age group that voted for John McCain."

CNN Poll: 3 out of 4 want illegal immigration decreased

Interesting how the high numbers seem to coincide with unemployment rates.

WASHINGTON (CNN) - A new national poll indicates that nearly three-quarters of all Americans would like to see a decrease in the number of illegal immigrants in the country.

Seventy-three percent of those questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Thursday morning called for a drop in the number of illegal immigrants, with 22 percent saying the number should remain the same and just 3 percent stating that there should be an increase in the number of illegal immigrants. That 73 percent figure is the highest number since CNN started asking this question four years ago.

According to the poll, 37 percent want to see all illegal immigrants deported, also the highest number since the questions was first asked in 2006, and another 23 percent say that the number of illegal immigrants in the country should be decreased significantly.

"Support for deporting all illegal immigrants is highest among older Americans and people who live in rural areas. It's highest in the South and Midwest and nearly as high in the Northeast, but only one in four Westerners think that all illegal immigrants should be deported," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.

Obama Approval Rises

It makes a difference when you start acting like you're in charge, not the crazy people.

A new CNN/Opinion Research survey finds President Obama's approval ratings up since his speech last week. Obama now has a 58% job approval rating, up 5 points since a similar poll in late August.

In addition, the president's approval is on the rise for individual issues such as health care (51%), the economy (54%), foreign affairs (58%) and taxes (52%).

The Gallup daily tracking poll also shows Obama's approval up slightly.

Polls Show Jump in Support for Obama, Moved Swing Voters

Now that's a sign of a damn good speech.

A CNN instant poll of those who watched President Obama's speech found that support for his health care reform plan jumped 14 points, from 53% to 67%.

In addition, 72% said he clearly stated his goals.

and

Democracy Corps did dial testing and focus groups with 50 independent and weak partisan voters watching President Obama's speech last night and found "these swing voters reacted strongly to Obama's message."

Key findings: "Support for Obama's plan jumped 20 points, from 46% before the speech to 66% after. Importantly, Obama also achieved one of his principal goals of boosting the intensity of support. Prior to the speech, just 2% of these swing voters supported the plan strongly while 26% opposed it strongly; by the end of the evening those numbers were virtually reversed, with 28% supporting the plan strongly against just 8% strongly opposed."

CNN Poll: Republicans make gains, but trail Democrats

Again, there is an in for someone to lead and get back the high road (and the poll numbers) but they have to step up and freaking do it.

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Despite the drop in President Barack Obama's approval ratings, Republican policies are still not as popular as Democratic policies, according to a new national poll.

A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Friday morning indicates that the GOP has gained some ground in polls in recent months, but Democrats still hold the advantage on key issues like the economy and health care.

Fifty-two percent of people questioned say the president's policies will move the country in the right direction. An equal percentage feel the same way about the polices of the Democrats in Congress. What do Americans think of Republican policies? Forty-three percent say the GOP's policies will move the country in the right direction. Nearly half of those polled said congressional Republicans would move the country in the wrong direction.

Most Feel Obama Has Been Successful

His approval ratings are coming more down to earth, but he's still beating the crud out of the Republicans.

As President Obama approaches his 200th day in office, a new CNN/Opinion Research poll finds that 51% of those questioned feel that the first six months of the Obama presidency have been a success, with 37% suggesting it's been a failure.

As a comparison, 56% felt the same way about President George W. Bush eight years ago.

Bush's approval couldn't be more irrelevant considering the difference in the state of the nation at the time.

CNN Poll: Do Americans care if Obama smokes?

I'd much rather that he smoke than binge drink and choke on pretzels...

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Most Americans say that President Barack Obama's struggle to quit smoking doesn't change their views of him, according to a new national poll.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Friday also indicates that only a third say that they would like to see Obama give up cigarettes completely.

"Obama has admitted that he still smokes on occasion, but nearly nine in 10 Americans say that doesn't affect their view of him and only 12 percent think that indicates something negative about Obama himself," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Eighty-five percent believe that shows how hard it is to quit cigarettes."

One third of those questioned in the survey say that they would prefer that Obama never smoke again, with 18 percent feeling that an occasional cigarette is OK and 48 percent saying they would not mind if Obama smoked every day.

(snip)

"Liberals are accused of getting into people's business. Do they care if President Obama smokes? No. About half say it's OK with them if he smokes every day," says CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider. "Conservatives? About half of conservatives also say it's also OK with them if the president smokes every day."

Pic is the President signing the tobacco bill.

CNN Poll: Many Americans hold unfavorable view of Muslim world

Wonder if all that "crusade" and "Axis of Evil" talk had anything to do with it?

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Hours before President Barack Obama departs for a trip to the Middle East, a new national poll suggests that only one in five Americans has a favorable view of Muslim countries.

That compares to 46 percent of the people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey who say they have an unfavorable opinion of Muslim countries. That's up five points from 2002, when 41 percent indicated they had an unfavorable view.

Three in ten meanwhile say they have a neutral opinion of Muslim countries.

The poll also suggests that most Americans think people in Muslim countries don't think highly of the United States. Nearly eight in ten questioned say people in Muslim countries have a unfavorable opinion of the U.S., with 14 percent saying Muslims hold a favorable view.

But the poll indicates Americans seem to be split on whether such negative opinions by Muslims matter. Fifty-three percent of those questioned say they think Muslim views of the U.S. matter a great deal or a moderate amount, with 47 percent saying that Muslim opinions of the U.S. don't matter very much or at all.

CNN Poll: Americans OK with more government influence in return for lower health care costs

Yesssss.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – A new national poll indicates that most Americans are receptive to having more government influence over their health care in return for lower costs and more coverage.

Sixty-three percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Friday said they would favor an increase in the federal government's influence over their own health-care plans in an attempt to lower costs and provide coverage to more Americans; 36 percent were opposed.

The poll also suggests that slightly more than six out of 10 think the government should guarantee health care for all Americans, with 38 percent opposed.

(snip)

The poll indicates a partisan split. Democrats overwhelmingly support increased government influence over their health-care coverage in return for lower costs and great coverage for more Americans. Six out of 10 independents feel the same way, but only one in four Republicans agree.

"Opposition to President Barack Obama's health-care plan is ideological. It comes from Republicans and Conservatives. You are not hearing a lot of opposition right now from the business community and the health-care industry," Schneider said.

CNN Poll: Powell vs. Cheney and Limbaugh

Those unfavorables are what the RNC should be looking at carefully. Hope they stick with their current plan though.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – As Colin Powell fires back against Dick Cheney and Rush Limbaugh in the latest skirmish in the battle over the future of the Republican Party, a new national poll indicates that Americans have a much more favorable opinion of Powell than Cheney or Limbaugh.

The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey, released Monday, suggests that 70 percent have a favorable opinion of Powell, who was Secretary of State during President George W. Bush's first term, and who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Persian Gulf War.

Only 30 percent of those polled have a favorable view of Limbaugh, the popular conservative radio talk show host, with 53 percent saying they hold an unfavorable opinion.

In poll numbers released Thursday, 37 percent say they have a favorable opinion of Dick Cheney, with 55 percent indicating they hold an unfavorable view of the former vice president.

Among Republicans, it's a different story. The poll suggests that 66 percent of Republicans have a favorable view of Cheney, 64 percent give Powell a thumbs up, and 62 view Limbaugh in a favorable way.

An Unfavorable View of Cheney

Taegan and I were thinking the same thing.

As former Vice President Dick Cheney prepares to give a major speech today on national security, a new CNN/Opinion Research poll finds that 55% of Americans have an unfavorable opinion of him while 37% have a favorable opinion of Cheney.

With President Obama giving his own speech this morning, it almost makes you wonder if the White House set a trap for the former vice president.

CNN Poll: Obama moving US in right direction

Jeebus, just when I'm pulling my hair out it seems the public doesn't give a crap about the cable mawmaw, they loves them some Obama.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – As the Republican Party gets ready to condemn what they call the Democrats 'march to socialism', a new national poll indicates that most Americans believe President Barack Obama's policies would move the country in the right direction.

Sixty-three percent of people questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Wednesday say they think the policies being proposed by the President would push the nation in the right direction, with 35 percent saying those policies would send the country in the wrong direction.

But the poll suggests that Americans don't feel the same way about the Republicans. Thirty-nine percent of those questioned say that the policies of GOP Congressional leaders would move the country in the right direction, with a slight majority, 53 percent, saying Republican proposals would move the nation in the wrong direction.

"The poll indicates that some of Obama's popularity is rubbing off on congressional Democrats," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "Even though Nancy Pelosi has a low approval rating and Harry Reid is facing some low numbers in polls taken in his home state, 57 percent think that the policies of the Democratic leaders in Congress would move the country in the right direction. That's not good news for the GOP."

This is after two weeks of constant "Nancy Pelosi hates our brave CIA". I really need to get that pic framed and on my wall for days like today. Harry Reid still needs to go though.

CNN Poll: Abortion stance not hurting Obama

They try and try but the poop just won't stick.

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Six in ten Americans continue to approve of how Barack Obama is handling his job as president — and despite the controversy over Obama's appearance at Notre Dame on Sunday, Catholics have a high opinion of him, according to a new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll.

According to the survey released Monday, there is virtually no difference between the views of Obama among practicing Catholics and Catholics who do not attend Mass regularly. Obama's position on abortion has no effect on how most Americans — and how most Catholics — view Obama.

Sixty-two percent of Americans polled approve of Obama's performance, and 35 percent do not approve. Among Catholics, the poll suggests 65 percent have a positive view of the job the president is doing, and 33 percent do not. The sampling error on that question is plus or minus 3 percentage points for the general population, and plus or minus 6.5 percentage points for Catholics.

CNN Poll: Global warming can be stopped

Good news/bad news.

WASHINGTON (CNN) — A new national poll indicates that a majority of Americans think that global warming is real, and that the federal government can do something to slow or stop the phenomenon.

Fifty-four percent of those questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Tuesday say that global warming is occurring and that Washington can take steps to slow the rate of global warming, or eventually stop it altogether. Twenty-seven percent agree that global warming is real, but think the federal government is powerless to stop it or slow it down, and 17 percent say that global warming is not occurring.

(snip)

The survey's release comes on the same day that more than 30 congressional Democrats met with President Obama at the White House to discuss the issue. The president is trying to prevent progress on climate change, one of his signature issues, from being derailed by divisions within his own party over "cap and trade."

"Since more than four in ten Americans believe that the government can do nothing about global warming, a cap-and-trade proposal — or any other government action that is meant to reduce global warming — may be a hard sell," Holland says.