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On handling the economy, Obama has dropped to a new low: 36% approve of his performance, according to Gallup’s latest poll. Specifically, on handling the federal budget, he scored a 32% positive, down from 38% in September and 49% in March. This is his lowest approval rating since becoming president. By contrast, Obama’s 51% approval rating on handling foreign affairs is up slightly from last month. The full opinion research report is available from Gallup at their Web site.
The simple truth about a proposed increase in the federal debt ceiling — that is currently unnecessary — is that it is designed to hide future spending in the 10 months leading up to the mid-term elections in November 2010. Here’s the deal on the House bill (passed 2-4-2010) with 233 For (all Democrats), 187 Against, (171 Republications and 16 Democrats),and 14 Not Voting (8 Democrats, 6 Republicans), according to govtrac.us:
(On January 28, 2010, Senate the legislation on a roll call vote with 60 Ayes, 39 Nays, and one Present/Not Voting, according to govtrack. Voting For the bill were 58 Democrats and two independents, Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman and Vermont (admitted socialist) Sen. Bernie Sanders. Voting Against the bill were 39 Republicans; voting Present was the gutless Wyoming Sen. Enzi Michael, according govtrack figures.) The intent is: Quickly pass a single onerous spending bill instead of many little onerous bills, and do it early in the election year so the voters (hopefully) forget about the cost of all of the legislation about which Obama and his Democrat Congress will boast that they are “giving” the average American so much; yes, so much debt. (Remember, the government doesn’t “give” anyone anything: They tax Americans, use up a bunch of the collected funds paying bureaucratic overhead, then they parse out what’s left to their constituencies. It is robbing Peter to pay Paul, with a thieving middle man siphoning off funds in the process.) The disingenuous fact is that these same spendthrift officials will brag about how they are attempting to control spending (in the out-years), reduce “wasteful” programs, and become neo-fiscal conservatives all the while spending like drunken sailors on shore leave. The Associated Press noted that “The huge increase to $14.3 trillion in the cap on federal borrowing was designed by Democratic leaders to ensure that the rank and file won’t have to vote again to run up another increase before facing voters increasingly angry over government spending and debt in the November midterm elections.” Investors Business Daily calls the action “naked politics, “ and writes that this level of fiscal irresponsibility “will break all records. Indeed, by some recent estimates our (federal) debt will surge $13 trillion by 2020, more than twice the total debt accumulated in our nation’s first 220 years of existence.” Massachusetts Democrat Jim McGovern called the bill, H.J. Res. 45, a ”reckless or irresponsible act.” He was among the 37 Democrats — most from GOP-leaning districts — who voted against the measure. Obama’s approval rating continued its decline this week, with 42% saying they Strongly disapprove while 23% Strongly Approve, which yield a Presidential Approval Index of -19. This is a new low for Obama’s approval index, according to Rasmussen Reports. (The Rasmussen Approval Index is the difference between those who Strongly Approve and Strongly Disapprove.) The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Sunday 12-13-09 shows that 23% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President and 42% , Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -19.
Among voters overall…
Obama’s approval ratings are negative among those who consider the economy to be the most important issue…
And his ratings are dramatically negative among those who consider fiscal policy issues the most important,
Among both younger and older demographics Obama scores negative Approval Index numbers, as he does the vast middle American segment.
From an income perspective, the Obama’s ratings are weakest among voters who earn $40,000 to $100,000 annually. Some readers have recently expressed concern that currently there’s no apparent “Impeach Obama” effort even though all of the good Web URLs have already been staked out. So, while not organizing such an impeachment effort, we did create a bumper stick for the effort — whenever it gets off the ground. Here ’tis.
If anyone wants to send this file to a printer to get things going, send us a note at editor@SirensPromise.com, and we’ll send you the digital file. One reader of a conservative political blog commented recently… “I’m surprised we have not heard people demanding for Obama to be impeached. The whole cabinet (Czars) should be impeached for running this Country into the ground, for acting like they hate America and….” Well, it is not as if no one has thought about it. In such an effort, setting up a Web site would be Job One. So, we checked to see what Web addresses, URLs, are available on the subjects of impeachment and recalling Obama. Surprisingly, all of the good URLs are already taken — though generally not active. And even more amazing, they were all taken BEFORE Obama was elected President! Here is the chronology: The URL, the date it was claimed, and the URL’s status.
Event: Obama wins Illinois seat in US Senate, 2 Nov 2004
Event: Obama wins US Presidency, 4 Nov 2008 Disapproval of Obama’s performance as President continues to increase, widening the spread between “Strongly Disapprove,” 39%, and “Strongly Approve,” 25%. The Presidential Performance Rating is the delta between the two, thus a negative 14%. This compares with the the Ramusssen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Nov. 1, when Obama’s Disapproval Rating was a negative 10% — thus, 39% disapproving versus 29% approving. Overall, 52% of voters say they at least somewhat disapprove of the President’s performance while 47% at least somewhat approve. The Rasmussen trends chart appears below.
From the same small state tucked under the eastern arm of Canada, serving the same largely lower-income constituencies, facing the same fiscal challenges, and carrying identical banners for the same political party, Maine’s two senators present a Dorian Gray portrait of contrasts. One has staked out a position of courage; the other of compromise — Senators Collins and Snowe, respectively. The stark contrasts began emerging two weeks ago when Maine Sen. Olympia Snowe defected from the Republican Party to cast the lone GOP vote for The Baucus Bill, an action that significantly moved forward the federal government’s takeover of the American healthcare system and gave Obama the questionable ability to declare that he had achieved a “bipartisan” victory. Now, Maine Sen. Susan Collins — representing precisely the same demographics as Sen. Snowe — voted against the Obama’s healthcare legislation in a 60-39 party-line vote. As did Sen. Snowe, further obfuscating her position.
At 8:11 p.m. Saturday, The Washington Post moved its first Internet news advisory on passage of the healthcare bill in the upper chamber: “Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (Nev.) this evening secured the 60 votes needed to move an $848 billion health-care reform bill to the Senate floor for debate, clearing the way for amendment deliberations to begin after the Thanksgiving recess.” At 9:07 p.m. Saturday, Sen. Collins’ email list received this notification: “Senator Susan Collins tonight voted against considering a divisive, partisan bill and, instead, urged her colleagues to work together to develop a new, bipartisan proposal to help reform our nation’s health care system.” The roll call vote registered these results: Voting for the healthcare legislation: 58 Democrats and 2 independents; Voting against the healthcare legislation were: 39 Republicans and 0 Democrats. At perhaps one of the most crucial policy moments in recent Senate history, Sen. Snow could not muster the energy or commitment to stand by her previous treacherous vote, and retained an innocuous official Web site position unrelated to the national healthcare debate and the immediate Senate vote. Sen. Snowe’s official Web site offered the following lead story of tortured construction, and maintained this content into the following week: “As reports regarding the impact the economic stimulus plan has [sic.] had on job creation and retention in the nation continue to demonstrate significant inaccuracies, U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine) today, in a letter, demanded that the Administration provide the methodology used to calculate job claims and explain the reporting errors on the Recovery.gov Web site.”
As wishy-washy as Sen. Snowe has been regarding her precise position regarding healthcare reform, Sen. Collins has been direct. Sen. Collins made the following unequivocal declarations in her Saturday night email message to constituents, a message that immediately followed her Senate vote. “We must find a way to control the health care costs that have driven up the cost of coverage for families, employers and governments alike. But Senator Reid’s proposal falls far short when it comes to reining in the cost of healthcare…. “This bill would actually drive up the cost of health insurance for many middle-income families and small businesses… “This bill would impose billions of dollars in new penalties on employers, which will ultimately be paid by American workers in the form of reduced wages and lost jobs. This just does not make sense, especially at a time when unemployment already exceeds 10 percent… “[This bill] would create a taxpayer-subsidized, government-run health insurance company which would ultimately lead to fewer choices and higher costs. “[This bill] would cut hundreds of billions of dollars from Medicare, which provides care for our oldest Americans and most vulnerable citizens. These cuts would adversely affect the ability of Maine’s hospitals, nursing homes, home health agencies, and other health care providers to provide essential services to our seniors. Any savings in Medicare should be used to shore up the financially troubled program. This tale of these two senators, who represent exactly the same constituencies under the same political banner, is one that gives Democrats both concern and hope. Immediately after Saturday’s decisive vote, Sen. Harry Reid called both Maine politicians and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar personally visited Sen. Collins, according to The New York Times. The votes of Senators Collins and Snowe will be critical elements in determining the future of Obama’s healthcare takeover. Perhaps integrity, deliberation and prudence will win, with Sen. Collins’ reasoned approach eeking out victory. Obama’s approval rating by Americans dropped to 49% this week, the first time his presidential performance rating has fallen below the fifty-percent mark, according to the Gallup daily tracking poll. Obama began July at 60% approval, a rating that evidently was negatively impacted by the ongoing and contentious debate over national healthcare, total unemployment at 17%, the growing federal deficit, and Americans’ concern with Obama’s reliance on government spending to solve the nation’s problems. By September, Obama’s approval rating had fallen into the low 50s. Although his performance approval reached 50% numerous times, it never dropped below 50% until now. |
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Not to be confused with her counterpart’s vacillation and her disloyal behavior, Sen. Collins seized the moment and immediately emailed her constituents with news of the Senate vote and of her strong stance regarding it.
Not only do Mainers, and all Americans, need a senator more concerned with the quality, affordability and availability of their healthcare than Sen. Snowe, but they also need one who can hire a staff that can write a simple declarative sentence.