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Rasmussen...
What They Told Us:
Reviewing Last Week’s Key Polls
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Wisconsin and Libya. Angry protesters are in the streets. Here at home
they’re exercising their democratic rights in a budget battle; over
there, they’re being shot down for seeking democratic rights in real
battles.
A sizable number of voters are following new Wisconsin Governor Scott
Walker’s showdown with unionized public employees in an effort to close
the state’s growing budget deficit, and nearly half (47%) now side with
the governor. Sixty-seven percent (67%) oppose the tactic by Democratic
state senators to flee Wisconsin to prevent a vote that would limit the
rights of some public employee unions, but support for the unions is
now at 42%, up from 38% earlier in the week.
The teachers’ unions are among those Walker and other budget-conscious
governors have targeted. Americans continue to believe strongly that
being a teacher is an essential job, but a plurality (46%) thinks it’s
a bad thing that most teachers are unionized. Thirty-seven percent
(37%) disagree and say, in terms of its impact on the nation, it’s a
good thing that these teachers belong to public employee unions.
Most Americans also have their eye on the growing political unrest in a
number of Arab nations including Libya. Just 29% think a change of
government in any of these countries will be good for the United
States, but 67% still say America should stay out of the situation over
there.
Fifty-eight percent (58%) of Adults already think the unrest in the
Arab world may lead to a major new war involving the United States,
with 26% who say it is Very Likely.
Thirty-one percent (31%) see that outcome as unlikely, but that
includes just four percent (4%) who say it is Not At All Likely.
Egypt has long been the second largest recipient of U.S. foreign aid,
but despite its apparent turn toward democracy and similar ongoing
moves in neighboring countries, the majority of Americans want to end
that aid to all Arab nations in the Middle East. Just over half favor
continuing foreign aid to the number one recipient, Israel.
With President Obama maintaining a relatively low profile as political
unrest spreads through the Arab world, the number of voters who rate
his handling of national security issues as poor (36%) has hit its
highest level since the beginning of December. Forty percent (40%) give
the president good or excellent marks in the national security area,
down five points from surveys the last three weeks. However, this
survey was taken prior to the U.S. government’s announcement yesterday
of economic sanctions against Libya in response to the violent methods
being used to put down the protestors there.
Voters also are inclined to think the president can do a better job
when it comes to the economy. Thirty-five percent (35%) feel the
president is doing a good or excellent job handling the economy, but
47% rate the job he’s doing in this area as poor, the most negative
finding since mid-November.
While voters may question how Obama is dealing with the bad economy and
think his new budget doesn’t cut deeply enough, most (52%) still blame
the recession that began under his predecessor George W. Bush for the
problems he’s trying to deal with.
Obama’s overall job approval ratings have taken a dive in the Rasmussen
Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll, and the number of voters who
give him favorable ratings for leadership has fallen to its lowest
level since he took office in January 2009. Just 37% of voters now say
the president is doing a good or excellent job as a leader. Forty
percent (40%) view his performance as poor.
On the other hand, voters are showing slightly less negativity towards
Congress. Only 15% give Congress good or excellent marks. Still, that’s
the body’s highest positive ratings since last August. Forty-two
percent (42%) say Congress is doing a poor job, but that is the lowest
negative rating found since regular tracking began in November 2006.
At the same time, favorability ratings have dropped for all of the top
congressional leaders except House Speaker John Boehner.
Republicans hold a nine-point lead over Democrats – 46% to 37% - on the
Generic Congressional Ballot.
Voters have more confidence now that Republicans rather than Democrats
have a plan for the future, and they’re almost evenly divided over
whether either political party is really the party of the American
people.
As for economic indicators, the Rasmussen Consumer Index, which
measures daily consumer confidence, has fallen to a new low for the
year. Its companion Rasmussen Investor Index is down 11 points from a
month ago.
Trends over time in the Rasmussen Consumer Index suggest that
confidence in the overall economy does not lead to confidence about
personal finances, and vice versa.
In case Americans aren’t in a bad enough economic mood, it’s tax time
again. Only nine percent (9%) of Americans think the United States has
the best tax system in the world, perhaps in part because many still
question the fairness of what they have to pay.
The downward trend of early tax filers continues, with just 29% of
Americans saying that they have already filed their income taxes.
In other surveys last week:
-- Most voters nationwide (56%) continue to favor repeal of the
national health care law, but one-in-five now believe the plan will
have no real impact on the federal deficit.
-- Twenty-six percent (26%) of Likely U.S. Voters say the country is
heading in the right direction, down five points from the week before
and the lowest finding since the beginning of the year.
-- Many people believe the United States and its allies should
cooperate more, and a solid majority (55%) of U.S. voters still think
that the better way for that to happen is for America’s allies to
follow our lead.
-- When it comes to illegal immigration, most voters believe the
government just needs to enforce the laws that are already on the
books. Two-out-of-three voters (67%) say it’s better to enforce
existing immigration laws than to create new laws in order to combat
illegal immigration. Just 24% say new immigration laws are the better
course.
-- The rise of electronic readers and online outlets such as Amazon
threaten to make the traditional bookstore obsolete as the recent
bankruptcy of Borders Books suggests. While most are still most likely
to go to a bookstore or some other retail store to buy a book
one-out-of-four buy from the Internet or download directly to an
e-reader.
-- Americans have an overwhelmingly favorable view of George
Washington, the nation’s first president, but very few consider his
birthday -- honored last Monday as President’s Day -- a very important
holiday.
-- Americans view Ronald Reagan as America’s most influential president
in the past half-century.
-- One-in-three Americans (33%) say they are at least somewhat likely
to watch tomorrow night’s 83rd annual Academy Awards. Their favorites
in the best acting categories are Jeff Bridges in “True Grit” and
Natalie Portman in “Black Swan.”
Remember, if it’s in the news, it’s in our polls.
Read it with links at Rasmussen
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