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President Obama has his first approval rating, 68% from Gallup. Now, this is mostly just a halo from his inauguration and first week of initiatives. It won’t consistently be that high (I think). Popular presidents like Reagan and Clinton left office with ratings in the mid-60s, while unpopular ones like Carter, Nixon and George W. Bush were in the 20s. My guess is that President Obama will average out somewhere from 55-60%, though I of course hope for the highest possible rating.
More importantly, this is part of the process of getting America back where it needs to be. The last couple years have shown us the malaise that sets in when the person in the highest office is almost universally loathed. Whether the president is Democratic or Republican, you can’t get things done that way.
It’s also a warning shot for congressional Republicans who want to derail the stimulus or hold up nominations for penny-ante reasons (this means you, John Cornyn): The President Will Steamroll You. This isn’t the president you fly in at night and ferry in and out of a fundraiser, trying your damndest to avoid being photographed with him.
We’re once again in an America where the people are firmly behind their president. To put it in as crass a way as possible: Move, bitch, get out the way.
Move, bitch, get out the way.
Better still, paraphrase the great line from the ghost of Col. Stinkmeaner in Season 2 of “The Boondocks”:
“This is how you break your FOOT off in a right-wing muthaf**ka’s ass!!”
This: “This isn’t the president you fly in at night and ferry in and out of a fundraiser, trying your damndest to avoid being photographed with him.”
I’m probably a bit more skeptical about Obama’s long-term popularity, since the MSM is going back to its “Clinton Rules” as we speak. But when you’re in the middle of an economic crisis, intangible things like confidence really do matter, and Obama projects it. Honestly, ever since Katrina, could anyone sincerely argue that Bush II was a leader in any respect? On the economy? On the military? On showing the world that we’re still the greatest nation on the planet?
What I’m not skeptical about, however, is Obama’s willingness to fight back against the Republican smear machine and the whiny bitching from the punditocracy (“Bu – bu – but – what about bipartisanship OMG?”). The Republicans created this mess, and they should be firmly ignored until we’re out of it.
Make us proud, President Obama. And _please_ put in some serious regulations for the bailout. Don’t just throw good money after bad. And while you’re at it, let the Big Three fail. Provide benefits for the workers to find other jobs, but let’s face it: American auto companies are dead weight. Hell, sell them to Honda and Toyota instead.