Gallup: Americans Approve of Most Obama Actions to Date

[Barack_America]

Americans Approve of Most Obama Actions to Date

Widespread support for decisions on ethics reform, interrogations, fuel standards

PRINCETON, NJ -- Of seven actions Barack Obama has taken during the early days of his presidency, five are supported by large majorities of Americans.



The Jan. 30-Feb. 1 USA Today/Gallup poll asked Americans to say whether they approve or disapprove of seven specific actions Obama has taken as president. Americans' general support for most of these is in line with Obama's initial overall job approval ratings.

The public is most supportive of his decisions to name special envoys to oversee the administration's efforts in the Middle East, and Pakistan and Afghanistan, and to tighten rules on people working as lobbyists either before or after serving in his administration. Both of these moves are favored by 76% of Americans.

Americans are nearly as supportive of Obama's actions to limit the interrogation methods that can be used on military prisoners -- actions designed to ensure the United States does not resort to torture to find out information from prisoners. Seventy-four percent of Americans favor that decision, the same percentage who favor his executive order to institute higher fuel efficiency standards.

Two in three Americans approve of his signing a bill to make it easier for workers to sue for pay discrimination, the first legislation he has signed into law as president.

The public does not agree with everything Obama has done, however. For example, more Americans say they disapprove (50%) than approve (44%) of his decision to order the closing of the Guantanamo Bay prison for terrorist suspects in Cuba within a year.

Further, Obama's decision to reverse the prohibition on funding for overseas family-planning providers may be the least popular thing he has done so far. This was an executive order that forbade federal government money from going to overseas family-planning groups that provide abortions or offer abortion counseling. Fifty-eight percent of Americans disapprove of Obama's decision to lift this ban, while only 35% approve of it. The ban on federal funds to these groups was put in place by Ronald Reagan, but lifted by Bill Clinton. George W. Bush re-instituted the ban after taking office in 2001, but Obama has once again lifted it.

More:
http://www.gallup.com/poll/114091/Americans-Approve-Obama-Actions-Date.aspx

FYI, Obama's approval rating today stands at 66%.

[Occam Bandage]

1. I can sorta halfway understand approving of torture, say, if you're

a sick bastard and think that torturing people is totally worth it if it might someday save an American life. But who are the 24% of people who honestly believe that ethical standards in Washington are too tight, and that further tightening is inappropriate?

[Barack_America]

2. But you see, on the issues they don't support him, they're clearly wrong.

So it's even better!

(trying to be an optimist here)

[w4rma]

4. Partisan Republicans who vote the opposite of any Democrat, no matter what. (nt)

[firedupdem]

3. Thanks for this info! n/t

[Barack_America]

5. .

:kick:

Because good news seems to sink around here lately.

[FrenchieCat]

7. Because DU does what the media wants them to do.

We are as predictable as a winter day in Hawaii!

[Clio the Leo]

6. Those 66% of people polled who aren't thrilled about Gitmo....

.... cant get stuffed!

And that's all I have to say about that.

It was my hope that it would be his FIRST act as President and .... essentially, it was. I watched it happen live and in color and I enjoyed every minute of it.

[Barack_America]

8. That's what I was trying to articulate in post #2.

But you did it so much better!

:hi:

[Clio the Leo]

9. I have found that ....

.. "get stuffed" which is the Aussie version of "go fuck yourself" to be a highly effective method of communicating one's sentiment on many different topics.

Feel free to borrow it. I stole it from an entire nation. :)

[bettyellen]

12. 56%

[Clio the Leo]

15. Thank you, I'm tard .... had a long day. :-) NT

[Kalyke]

19. Spelled "tard" like we Tennesseans say it.

:)

[Clio the Leo]

20. Yeah, well, that's 'cause Im a Tennessean...... homie. :-) NT

[Proud Liberal Dem]

10. Would the closure of Gitmo be unpopular because..........

Most people think (or fear) that those inmates will be sent to prisons in their states? :shrug: I know here in Indiana some people are working on some resolution to oppose any such a transfer. What kills me is that everybody seems so damned certain that everybody at Gitmo has already been convicted and apparently have bought into the notion parroted by the Bush (mis-)administration that these people are the "worst of the worst"- despite the obvious fact that none of them have actually been tried and some may be completely innocent. I guess we should try sending them wherever the 1993 WTC conspirators were tried? Them being in federal prison there didn't seem to bother anybody then.

What's with the lack of support for funding for overseas family planning groups? Haven't we harmed enough third world countries with our anti-family policies?

[Princess Turandot]

21. It's hard to tell, since a lot of the news reports around this..

have included things from the guy Bush released becoming an Al-Qaeda VIP to returning Gitmo to Cuba (the latter being demands from the Cubans.) So, people may associate this with just releasing whomever is there and/or giving up the base (which I don't think is what BO is talking about doing.) 32% of Democrats polled said no to this and 41% of Democrats said no to the trickily worded 'abortion funding' question.

[wildflower]

11. Why don't people approve of lifting the global gag rule?

"Further, Obama's decision to reverse the prohibition on funding for overseas family-planning providers may be the least popular thing he has done so far. This was an executive order that forbade federal government money from going to overseas family-planning groups that provide abortions or offer abortion counseling. Fifty-eight percent of Americans disapprove of Obama's decision to lift this ban, while only 35% approve of it."

I don't understand why.

[starroute]

14. They may think it means the US is funding abortions

As I recall, lifting it means that the US can now support other services by family planning groups that also provide or advise abortion -- but that the US is not paying for any actual abortions.

If people think that the US will now be paying for abortions overseas, they might be more likely to oppose lifting the gag rule -- particularly if they associate it with forced abortions in places like China.

Clearly some more education of the public is needed on this issue.

[Doremus]

13. That's what happens when we let the pukes frame our issues.

They've turned the closing of Gitmo into a bogeyman under the bed issue. "We don't want terra-ists in our states!!!!"

The last one, abortion funding in other countries, probably has more to do with general disapproval of giving away money we don't have than anything else.

[GeorgeGist]

16. Americans are a fickle lot ...

they don't like being victims but they don't mind being predators.

[underpants]

17. The new MSM meme is to compare transition 82% approval to the 66%

several posts on it here last night

[Barack_America]

18. Oh yes, they're still trying today. Even Chuck Todd laughed at it.

And Chuck Todd has seemingly never met an anti-Obama meme he didn't like.

[LynnTheDem]

22. "more Americans disapprove closing Guantanamo"...

And here I'd been giving Americans more credit than was due.