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Obama's Approval Ratings Sink to New Lows
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
July 2, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
Nearly two years into his second term,
52-year-old President Barack Obama faces the unenviable position of having the
lowest approval ratings at 41.3% in the 69-year-history of polling over 12 U.S.
presidents at this mark in his term.
What makes Obama’s fate so inexplicable is the fact that the U.S. economy
has dramatically improved since taking office Jan. 20, 2009. Less than two months after taking
office March 9, 2009, the Dow Jones Industrial Average hit rock bottom at 6,443. Closing today at 16,796, nearly a
300% higher, the economy has added over $8 million jobs, dropping the
unemployment rate from a 2010 high of 9.6% to today’s 6.3%. Based on improvement in the economy,
Obama should have some of the highest approval ratings in modern history. Surveying 1,446 registered voters, a
recent Quinnipiac University poll 33% said Barack was the worst president since
WW II.
Since launching his political career as the keynote speaker for former
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston
Jul. 26, 2004, Obama established himself as one of America’s best orators. His speeches during his presidency
have received high marks on both sides of the aisle, whether you agreed with his
liberal politics or not. According
to the same Quinnipiac poll, President Ronald Reagan enjoys the highest approval
ratings since WW II, attesting to his lasting message that still resonates with
voters. When Obama accepted the
Democratic nomination in Denver Aug. 28, 2008, he was touted by President John
F. Kennedy’s sole surviving child Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg as the closest
thing to her late father. After
nearly six years in office, Barack approval ratings have gone in the opposite
direction of Reagan and JFK.
Political scientists are scratching their heads trying to figure out what
went wrong with the Obama presidency.
Judging by conventional metrics, he’s got all the “Q” or charisma needed
to have matched approval ratings of the nation’s most popular presidents. When you consider how Obama pulled
the economy back from the brink or what was called the “Great Recession,” the
worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, it’s difficult to account
for his abysmal ratings. Most
political scientists don’t take into account Barack’s race, since no one’s
willing to admit his low ratings might be due to residual racism. What’s known for sure is that his
signature legislation called The Affordable Care act AKA Obamacare signed into
law March 23, 2010 has turned his legacy on its head. There’s an uncanny parallel between
Obamacare and former President George W. Bush’s Iraq War.
Before Bush launched the Iraq War March 20, 2003, he had approval ratings
of 68%. By the time Bush left
office Jan. 20, 2009, his approval ratings was about 28%, largely because the
economy tanked, causing the worst recession since the Great Depression. “Over the span of 69-years of American history and 12 presidents, President Barack Obama
finds himself with President George W. Bush at the bottom of the popularity
barrel,” said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll. Obama’s aggregate 41.3% poll is far
higher that Bush when he left yet far lower than former President Ronald Reagan
or Bill Clinton, both at 63%.
Discounting any racial overtones, Obama’s approval ratings started steadily
declining after he signed Obamacare into law March 23, 2010. When he told folks they could keep
their old insurance plans and doctors, things went south.
When insurance companies began issuing thousands of cancellation notices
in Oct. 2013, Obama’s credibility took another hit, continuing the downward
spiral where it is today. Today’s
divided government would have required Obama to actively woo conservatives in
Congress, hosting them at the White House to build rapport. Obama’s inability to form relationships with conservative on Capitol Hill has more to do
with his lack of stomach to deal with the endless criticism and antagonism. When you consider the problems with
Obamacare stemming largely from the government’s inability to regulate the
insurance industry, it’s no wonder that it’s worked at all. All the problems with the Obamacare
Website pale into comparison to real problems with industry price-gouging,
driving health insurance rates through the roof. Without consensus in Congress, it’s difficult to make Obamacare work.
Obama finds himself behind the Eight Ball on domestic and foreign policy
because of poor relationships on Capitol Hill.
However difficult Republicans on Capitol Hill, Obama would have higher
approval ratings if he put out more bipartisan effort. When you look at what’s
happening in Ukraine, Iraq, Syria, Iran and North Korea, Barack’s foreign policy
report card reveals barely passing grades.
While he deserves credit for getting Osama bin Laden May 1, 2011, he’s
currently allowing the next maniacal Islamic terrorist to run roughshod in the
Middle East. With Islamic State of
Iraq and the Levant’s 42-year-old sultan Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi annexing large
swaths of Iraq, Syria and Jordan, Obama’s losing more credibility. Allowing U.S.-Russian relations to
sink to a new post-Cold War low also doesn’t help Obama’s approval ratings, also
sinking to new lows.
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