While 7 out of 10 Democrats say they would like to see President Obama as their party's presidential nominee next year, that number isn't exactly as it ought to be, according to the latest poll from CNN/ORC:
That figure may seem promising, but support for Obama's re-nomination has fallen 11 percentage points since June.
Despite the decline, history is on Obama's side. "In 1994, only 57% of Democrats wanted the party to renominate Bill Clinton, and he went on to win the nomination and a second term two years later," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.
Without a prominent primary challenger, Obama's bid for re-election seems to be safe for now. But of those losing faith, the poll reveals that moderate Democrats are more likely than liberals to say the party should nominate someone else and younger Democrats are more likely to favor a new nominee than those who are older.
So many of his promises remain broken or unfulfilled, the economy registers a continually weak pulse, unemployment numbers remain appalling, and he continues to fiercely compete for the coveted title of Worst President in American History (Senator Marco Rubio has some excellent commentary on that one). I have difficulty imagining a world in which President Obama suddenly gains the economic know-how to instantly right the American ship and wins back the more thorough support of his base and the hearts of swing voters. (But then, I have difficulty imagining how Obama-supporters think the way they do in general, so, wash.) Could President Obama really be a one-term President? I'll admit I'm daring to hope, even if DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz thinks the President quite secure in his position (although, as she's developed a mild reputation for leading with her chin, my hopes are hardly dashed):
President Obama's reelection effort is in "remarkably good shape," the chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) asserted on Sunday.
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (Fla.), the DNC chief, said that she doesn't think the president's bid for a second term is in trouble."Not at all," Wasserman Schultz said on CBS's "Face the Nation" when asked if Obama was in political trouble.
"The president is in actually remarkably good shape, given that he is still struggling to help pull our economy out of the Republican -- the Republican recession that he inherited. His numbers are still strong. He still has widespread support. If anyone is in trouble, it's the Republican Party," she said.
Wait... didn't you say a while back that Democrats had taken ownership of the struggling economy, or something? Sigh... there's still a loooong way to go before Election 2012.
Update: According to today's Gallup tracking poll, President Obama's job approval rating just hit an all-time low of 39%, the first time its dropped below 40% in his Presidency, and disapproval stands at 54%. Ouch.