It's time to pull out my little gloat parade. Even after having beared the brunt of the full-throated Republican attack machine, Obama is still doing rather well and is well-liked by the American people - especially in some unexpected regions of the country.
Update: Wow, I had to go visit family so I didn't get to see this make the rec list. What fun! :)
Survey USA, which is sometimes (but not always) considered the gold standard for state by state polling, recently published some approval ratings in some key states for Barack Obama. All of the figures are from data collected March 20 - 22nd.
http://surveyusa.com/
WISCONSIN
Approve 53%
Disapprove 42%
NET: +11
WASHINGTON
Approve 62%
Disapprove 34%
NET: +28
VIRGINIA
Approve 55%
Disapprove 35%
NET: +20
NEW YORK
Approve 72%
Disapprove 23%
NET: +49
MISSOURI
Approve 57%
Disapprove 39%
NET: +18
MINNESOTA
Approve 61%
Disapprove 32%
NET: +29
MASSACHUSETTS
Approve 68%
Disapprove 26%
NET: +42
KENTUCKY
Approve 56%
Disapprove 38%
NET: +18
KANSAS
Approve 55%
Disapprove 40%
NET: +15
These are very, very strong figures on a state by state basis, especially when you take into account the fact that Obama lost Kansas, Kentucky, and Missouri. To have such strong polling data suggests that the American people support both Obama's policy agenda and his style. Isn't it refreshing having a competent Commander in Chief who actually engages the American people?
I don't know if anyone caught the CNN poll from March 15th, but I am thrilled with the results. The following question was posed to respondents:
"In general, do you hope that Barack Obama's policies will succeed or do you hope that his policies will fail?"
Succeed 86%
Fail 11%
Mixed 2%
This is rather striking. Only 11% of the country side with Rush Limbaugh, who has stated that he wants Obama to fail.
And here is my absolute favorite poll result in recent months, also taken from the CNN poll from March 15th:
"If the economy does not improve over the next 12 months, whose policies would you blame for that: the policies of George W. Bush and the Republicans, or the policies of Barack Obama and the Democrats?"
Bush and Republicans 54%
Obama and Democrats 32%
Both 9%
Neither 4%
Unsure 1%
Wow. Are people actually paying attention these days? Do they actually remember where to assign blame for the mess we are in?
Based on these figures, I am very much looking forward to the elections of 2010 and 2012.