Throughout his career as a national politician, President Obama often has benefited from comparisons with others. Nearing the end of the first year of his second term, he is running mostly against himself — and falling short. … The most recent national polls tell the story of Obama’s decline in […] Read more »
Parallels to Bush in Toxic Political Mix Threatening Obama
Barack Obama won the presidency by exploiting a political environment that devoured George W. Bush in a second term plagued by sinking credibility, failed legislative battles, fractured world relations and revolts inside his own party. Mr. Obama is now threatened by a similar toxic mix. The disastrous rollout of his […] Read more »
Forget Obamacare, remember when Syria was going to ruin Obama’s term? Remember Syria?
… To the extent that Google searches are a reasonable proxy for public interest, what we find, not surprisingly, is that Syria was supplanted in the public interest by – among other things – the government shutdown and issues related to healthcare. … This is consistent with the idea of […] Read more »
A Critical Few Weeks for Democrats? It Could Get Worse
No wonder some Democratic strategists are nervous about the next few weeks. President Barack Obama’s job approval numbers have taken a dive in two recent polls, and party insiders fear that every other poll released in the foreseeable future will show that the rollout of the president’s health care law […] Read more »
Obamacare and Character
The president’s job approval numbers have hit new lows. That’s actually not the worst news in a new round of polling. The worst news — or what the White House should find most worrisome — is that the president’s character has taken a hit. For most of the Obama presidency, […] Read more »
Loss of public’s trust poses major problems ahead for Obama’s agenda
Essential elements of Brand Obama in 2008 were trustworthiness and competence, virtues the candidate used to contrast himself with his predecessor, George W. Bush. … The emphasis on good government helped him win his first and second presidential elections and to bounce back from periods when his overall approval rating […] Read more »