Yes, yes: Republicans slid to a new nadir, too -- thanks, undoubtedly, to many Republicans disapproving of their own party. Nor did Democrats cover themselves with glory, fading to a two-year ebb. But the president's personal favorability has always been his calling card. Even when people tell pollsters they aren't enchanted with Obama's job performance on a set of issues, they've tended to like him personally. Bloomberg's new nationwide survey of US adults suggests that Obama's personal brand is in real trouble. A few polling notes:
(1) Obama is underwater on personal favorability at (47/49). Of the four categories offered -- very favorable, mostly favorable, mostly unfavorable, very unfavorable -- the highest percentage of respondents chose the last option.
(2) By a lopsided margin, Americans say the country is headed in the wrong direction (25 percent right / 68 percent wrong).
(3) On job performance, especially on specific issues, the news gets worse for Obama (follow the links for possibly explanatory factors):
- 45/49 percent approval (-4) overall approval/disapproval.
- 38/56 percent approval (-18) on the economy.
- 29/61 percent approval (-32) on deficits.
- 39/47 percent approval (-7) on negotiating with Republicans.
- 38/53 percent approval (-15) on fostering economic security.
- 31/53 percent approval (-21) on handling Syria
- 43/51 percent approval (-8) on managing the US' reputation in the world.
But hey, at least he's at 33/25 percent approval (+8!) on handling the appointment of a the new Fed chair...which hasn't happened yet.
(4) A new CBS/NYT survey confirms Obama's dismal ratings on foreign policy questions:
- 40/49 percent approval (-9) on foreign policy
- 39/44 percent approval (-5) on handing Iran (the poll was taken before this humiliation).
- 37/52 percent approval (-15) on handling Syria
- 64 percent say the president hasn't explained American goals in the conflict.
(5) Neither Bloomberg nor CBS/NYT asked any Obamacare-related questions, but we've got plenty of recent data on that front to examine. And despite the president's personal favorability rating remaining significantly higher than that of Congressional Republicans, two surveys out this week indicate that the public is poised to blame him equally for a potential government shutdown. These headlines probably contribute to the leveling of that playing field, even though they address a separate issue.
UPDATE - The New York Times and CBS News have released more data from their national survey. The results are terrible across the board for Obama. His overall approval rating is at 43/49, and he's underwater on every issue polled. Obamacare remains highly unpopular.