Yeah, the American people really do seem to be turning against President Obama

[WilliamPitt]

...here on DU.

Not so much out there in the flesh-world, tho.

Imagine that.

===

The number of Americans who believe that the nation is headed in the right direction has roughly tripled since Barack Obama's election, and the public overwhelmingly blames the excesses of the financial industry, rather than the new president, for turmoil in the economy, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.

At this early stage in his presidency, Obama continues to benefit from a broadly held perception that others should bear the bulk of responsibility for the severe economic problems that confront his administration. Americans see plenty of offenders, but only about a quarter blame the president and his team for an economy that's in the ditch.

Two-thirds of Americans approve of the way Obama is handling the country's top job, and six in 10 give him good marks on issue No. 1, the flagging economy. Those figures are little changed from last month.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/03/30/AR2009033003415.html?hpid=topnews

:shrug:

Must be a typo.

"One-fifth of the people are against everything all the time." - Bobby Kennedy

Hm.

[tridim]

1. K&R for Flesh-world!

[babylonsister]

2. TRIPLED?! Say it ain't so! There will be so many broken lil hearts

around here! :fistbump:

Thanks for the good news!

[tandot]

3. They must be all brainless Obama worshipper and kool-aid drinkers

if you'd believe some folks here on DU.

[blondeatlast]

60. You forgot the ever popular, classic...

"locksteppers."

Somehow, it seems to almost die a quiet, dignified death only to come raging back just before the lights dim that last time.

[Arugula Latte]

83. Remember, we joined a cult in the primaries, and, dammit, we're stickin' with it!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a head to shave and robes to don. *walks away with arms outstretched, zombie fashion*

[Oregone]

4. Isn't this sort of an argument from popularity?

Using polls to show dissenting people that they are "wrong". If you are simply pointing out a contrast, fine, but this meme seems everywhere on this site today.

I personally find the people posting here to be a little more informed, in my opinion. Sometimes information and knowledge can lead to dissent.

[chill_wind]

50. It's not even that. It's just more disingenuous snark fodder.

Nobody has been making his claim that "The American People are turning on Obama."

And while Obama critics can be known to do snark in equal measure (I'm not innocent when I've been on either sides of some issues), let's not pretend it's anything else when we do it.

[spoony]

55. It's rec bait. n/t

[cliffordu]

5. Heh...Kool-aid nation......

:rofl:

[No.23]

6. Fickleness works both ways.

Both in the direction of support and in the direction of tear downs.

And uncritical mind is an uncritical mind.

[old mark]

7. President Obama's approval rating this AM was 67%

Disapproval was 30%

Yeah, he's really losing support.....

I guess the 3% is some of us.


mark

[WilliamPitt]

9. Bobby Kennedy once said

"One-fifth of the people are against everything all the time."

Yup.

[arcadian]

8. Hey! Who likes puppies!!! Post in this subthread!

Anybody who doesn't is a communist!

[paparush]

10. Flesh World just might be the name of my next band..or my next album..not sure yet.

:-)

[paulk]

11. a lot of Obama's more zealous supporters

tend to see any disagreement over Obama's policies as "turning against Obama".

[SammyWinstonJack]

14. .

:thumbsup:

[TwilightZone]

15. It doesn't take much zealousness to view...

"Fuck you Obama" and other similar sentiments posted in numerous threads as "turning against Obama".

Personally, I'll take the zealots over those with the complete opposite agenda. But that's just me.

[paulk]

27. zealotry, like many things,

is in the eye of the beholder.

-----

I don't take the "fuck you Obama" posters seriously enough to care about, I guess. They are clearly not here to have any kind of meaningful exchange.

It is my opinion that there are an equal number of "zealots" who aren't here to have any kind of meaningful exchange, either.

[TwilightZone]

30. Agreed.

On all counts. "Zealots" could certainly be applied to both extremes. Frankly, I'd prefer the ones that are in Obama's corner over those who are here to disrupt.

[LanternWaste]

34. Self delete

Self delete

[WI_DEM]

35. Actually I only notice the people who always disliked Obama and have never given him a break

since the election who continually day after day whine about him.

[AZBlue]

75. Best. Post. Of. The. Week!

[Two Americas]

78. yeah

And it is so original.

[paulk]

76. well,

people only see what they want to see, I guess...

[Regret My New Name]

44. Are they the new thrity-percenters?

Myself, I'm giving Obama more time before I decide if he's "doing it wrong". He has a big mess on his hands and he hasn't a had a whole lot of time for anything he has done to come into affect. I'm always ask those who criticize Obama(on the left or right), what they would have preferred him to do and why they think the overall situation would be better if he did it that way.

Anyway... If somehow Obama turns out to be one of those "does everything wrong" sort of presidents, then I'm sure there will still be the equivalent of Bush's thirty-percenters who will support everything he does no matter what... I think that's just how the world works... That being said, I don't think Obama will fuck everything up like Bush did. I still have hope. :)

[progressoid]

12. 80 % of Americans think the government is hiding knowledge of the existence of extraterrestrials.

Nearly 50 years since an alleged UFO was sighted at Roswell, New Mexico, a new CNN/Time poll released Sunday shows that 80 percent of Americans think the government is hiding knowledge of the existence of extraterrestrial life forms.

While nearly three-quarters of the 1,024 adults questioned for the poll said they had never seen or known anyone who saw a UFO, 54 percent believe intelligent life exists outside Earth.

Sixty-four percent of the respondents said that aliens have contacted humans, half said they've abducted humans, and 37 percent said they have contacted the U.S. government. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

http://www.cnn.com/US/9706/15/ufo.poll/

[Lilith Velkor]

57. 80% of Americans thought invading Iraq was a good idea.

[dysfunctional press]

79. over 80% of americans believe in a god.

[cali]

13. this is heartbreaking news for some here.

Couldn't you have broken this news a little more sensitively?

[TwilightZone]

16. They'll just claim that the polls are wrong.

Already happening, actually.

[WilliamPitt]

17. Yeah, cuz that's how I roll.

Or not.

;)

[tomp]

22. like a flat tire. nt

[bridgit]

23. flat tires don't 'roll' least not in my neighborhood

[Usrename]

63. Isn't this a huge strawman?

Is there even one single post where someone claims that Obama's losing popularity?

I'm not all that tuned in here, but I haven't seen where anyone claimed that Obama's popularity is waning among the American public.

But kudos for the enormous depth of thought that must go into supporting such ideas.

[blogslut]

67. here you go

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=5351296

[Usrename]

70. Well there you go.

Thanks.

[Winterblues]

18. Do I think the USA is headed in the right direction..Hell yes..do I think Obama is error free??

I think he is listening to some people that have other interests other than the American people's at the top of their list..I don't understand the double standards with Wall Street and Main Street. Why don't the big banks and Insurance Giants have to provide the same business plans as the auto makers do? Why do the bankers and the auto makers get money up front but the consumers do not? If Obama really wanted to spur auto sales and thus the economy he would offer a matching funds program where if you buy a car the government will match the funding so you only have to pay half price. The companies would still receive all the money but the workers would be busy with the huge increase in sales and there would be a bottom up approach instead of the infamous "trickle down" which everyone in Washington seems so fond of. The American people would get the benefits instead of just the huge corporations.

[Orwellian_Ghost]

19. Cheerleading aside

If you took the time to actually read the entire poll you'd have to place the question validity in a very low category. Certainly not a poll of any substance or value. But you must have noticed that the majority of the people polled considered themselves either moderate or conservative.

Polls such as these tell us nothing of value.

Meanwhile foreclosures rise.

The military budget balloons.

The gap between the wealthy and poor widens.

Big banks get bailouts.

And so forth...

Take a look around. You don't need a poll to do that.

[WI_DEM]

26. Of course anybody who posts anything positive about Obama is "cheerleading"

and only those who oppose him are right thinking Americans. BTW, of course most of the people who are polled are 'conservative or moderate' because, hate to tell you this, most of the country is not liberal but middle of the road. I hate it too. I consider myself a liberal, but I know we are in the minority nationally.

The number of democrats polled is 36% republicans 25% and Independents is 33%

Number of liberals polled 20% (according to history of this poll it's been between 18-23 percent identifed as liberals).

Yet, I would guess it is among the liberals that Obama got his highest marks and conservatives where he got his lowest.

[bridgit]

20. Good thing DU ain't the 'real world', and for that matter if DU'd only have listened to me, me , ME!

during the primaries & GE stead of all, "Danger! Danger! We are the DUObamaTrons! Trampling all thought but our's. We have T-shirts!!""


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=5354174&mesg_id=5354334

[Name removed]

21. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[dionysus]

28. i guess the poll numbers upset you.

:rofl:

[chill_wind]

24. More strawman stuff. WHO has been making this claim? Seriously, who?

"The American people (really do) seem to be turning against President Obama."

If you want to post the good news about his latest poll numbers, why not just post it?

[WilliamPitt]

25. I see you haven't been over in GD - P.

[chill_wind]

33. There are broad claims of that?

I don't confuse individual critics with issues or axes as someone actually claiming there is poll-based or other formal consensus for your statement. I guess I'll have to look for those examples of your claim.

[Cha]

85. Because DU is a cesspool of

anti-Obamaism lately.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=5351296

[TahitiNut]

29. Uh-huh. Are these the same brain donors who gave Bush43 a 90% approval rating in 2002?

:shrug:

[WI_DEM]

32. Yes, and every other pollster out there too.

They are also pollsters who had Bush in the last 3 years of his presidency at historic lows. Why don't you want to believe that Obama is doing well within the country as a whole (if not among some on DU) because it goes against what you think it should be? I'm sure one day Obama might be polling less well and I'm sure you would jump on that poll as proof that he's not doing well.

[TahitiNut]

37. You obviously haven't the slightest fucking notion of what I want or what I think.

So, take your PERSONAL remarks and shove them up your ass.

For the RECORD ... I voted for Obama and 'approve' of the job Obama is doing.
For the RECORD ... I don't believe discussions of alternatives or expressions of disagreement necessarily constitute anything but interest.
For the RECORD ... I vote for candidates who LISTEN to legitimate public concerns and support that honest and informed expression as an essential component of democratic self-governance.

I just don't happen to believe the average polled citizen or "likely voter" pays much attention AFTER an election. Indeed, it's not much more even before one. HENCE: Bush43 got a 90% approval rating. It's horse shit.

[WI_DEM]

40. sorry, I obviously had you wrong.

[WI_DEM]

31. Obviously DU wasn't polled.

[progressoid]

36. Well that won't last.

[PatSeg]

59. Interesting graph

Especially Clinton who appears to have left office more popular than when he began.

[Hannah Bell]

80. the only one of all those guys.

[GeorgeGist]

38. How soon you forgot ...

that Bush 2 had similar popularity ratings at this point in his presidency.


Must be typical.

Hmmmm.

[earth mom]

39. The Washington Post is a right wing rag.

Spare me. :eyes:

[babylonsister]

52. I see. So the r/w rag is fudging the numbers and they're actually higher!

Good deal! :thumbsup:

[obiwan]

73. The Washington Times is right wing.

The Washington Post is centrist. They are the paper of Woodward-Bernstein fame.

[graywarrior]

41. That surprises me because all Obama's financial advisor are here

In case you haven't noticed.

[WilliamPitt]

42. *snarf*

:rofl:

[flvegan]

43. I don't see how anyone can be against a guy that's been on the job for two months.

But then, I do believe Bobby Kennedy was correct.

[Regret My New Name]

45. werd.

I say give him at least three months.. :P

[chill_wind]

46. Nope sorry. Still not buying the bogus premise

used for this post. The vocal minority may be guilty of a lot of regarded DU "sins" in questioning or criticizing from their own perspectives his various policies and may deal in other themes disliked by the mostly approving and supportive, but alleging broad claims about his falling public popularity -- "America is turning against Obama"-- don't appear to be among them.

Here's what I DO see, followed up with more of the increasingly frequent strawman same kind of commentary:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8307114

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=8307017&mesg_id=8307017

[annabanana]

47. Proving, yet again.. that

You can't fool all the people, all the time.

AND

America likes what it's seeing.

[NanceGreggs]

48. Imagine that ...

Who'da thunk it?

Thanks, Will!

:patriot:

[Dorian Gray]

49. Does that mean

that DU is made up primarily of that 1/5???

[burythehatchet]

51. Comedy Gold

It always serves as a great source of amusement when posters declare how DU posters are soooo far out of the mainstream. Like, who the fu@k are we? You're here, Will, and I'm here. I'm a pretty regular guy. Well educated, BA, MBA, CPCU; worked a fairly standard career. Currently serve on the board of a couple non-profits. Two kids, one graduating college in May. So what is it about me that makes me such an outlier? (rhetorical question, no need to answer).

I'll tell you. I read. I research. I question. I form informed opinions. I do all of these things to a degree that surpasses, by far, the efforts of the "flesh world". Perhaps you may have noticed, DU is consistently about 2 to 3 years ahead of the "flesh world" when it comes to delving into the details of events and public policy positions. In fact, we of the tin-foil crowd seem to always come out with the truth long before Boston Herald or the NY Times or the Wash Post. Why is that?

So before you put down everyone who works their ass off to learn the issues, you may want to consider that I got my fleshy parts too.

fu@k it all.

[Ilsa]

53. Yeah, Baby!

:woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo: :woohoo:

[specimenfred1984]

54. Yet we're giving "the people responsible" 100s of billions of our dollars

instead of holding them accountable for their crimes. A sad economic reckoning lies ahead for the U.S., it's going to be impossible to move ahead with new energy plans, new infrastructure plans, new health care plans, etc...with all the criminals still controlling all the money.

[nonconformist]

56. As is typical for Americans, they need to be directly affected before they care.

I haven't "turned against" Obama at all, and I know he's far better than McCain would be in this situation, but I'm still pissed about the double standard re: Wall Street and US auto makers.

Shame on us that are directly affected by this bullshit to voice our discontent.

[PLR_Writer]

58. Gobama!

You have my support.

[fascisthunter]

61. gotta disagree with ya here Will

we are pretty damn well aware of what's going on while those outside of DU, not so much. It's been that way and many who have questioned authority here regardless of political party have been right. It's not easy being honest about today's situation... it's harder when people on your own side want the uncomfortable truths not to be said on DU or anywhere else for that matter.

very disappointing.

[Usrename]

62. Brilliant strawman!

Who says the American people are turning on Obama?

How shallow can the discussion get?

[MessiahRp]

64. Unfortunately most of the people in fleshworld don't really know his plans

or the backgrounds of the people that he employed to implement them.

They only hear the RW media screaming against Obama and remember those assholes were blind supporters of Bush. In simple terms they are supporting Obama because they still don't support Bush or the insane group of idiots employed by the media that supported Bush.

They hear great speeches from Obama that talk of how he is going to help the economy, get us health care, etc... all great things that the American people want to hear...

Just most of them have no freakin' clue about the details on how he plans to get us there... if they did they'd have a lot less to be enthused about.

Giving the assholes on Wall Street an open ended blank check and giving government health care to the greedy bastard HMOs wouldn't go over so well to most Americans...

But the RW media is too busy fighting over other shit for any of the casual Americans to notice.

And that's why his approval rating is so high... In summation: Bush and his apologists still suck to the American people, Obama sounds good telling us what we want to hear without any details.

Rp

[goclark]

65. K and R for your post ~ Bingo!

:applause:

[Laurab]

66. K&R - If I only came to DU to get my "news"

I'd be certain that Obama's Presidency was all but over. I did learn a new meme in this thread, from many who like to post negative stuff constantly about Obama - "strawman" - watch for it in future posts!

[Bluebear]

71. I don't think you understand what "strawman" means, but whatever,

A negative post in and of itself is not considered a "strawman argument"

[Laurab]

81. I understand exactly what strawman means.

It seems to be the new word for anyone who presents any type of defense of Obama. The old ones have gotten tiring - "lockstep", "censoring free speech", "obamabot", "board nanny", et al. They're all usually "strawmen", too, by the way. I've seen many nicely worded ops explaining EXACTLY what the writer finds troubling, but they're dismissed as all those things by people who seem to have reading comprehension problems, or people who choose to ignore what the OP is saying, and trying to twist it into something it's not.

[October]

68. I've wondered for some time if we've been infiltrated or something

It's become increasingly negative around here. Every thread is vitriolic.

Not what I expected -- but in a way, what I've come to expect here at DU. It's just not the same place.

[lonestarnot]

69. K & R!

[obiwan]

72. I like and support President Obama.

I voted for him, too.

IMHO he is doing a great job, considering what he inherited. Smart too.

Of course, if we really want to bitch, we could bring back W or McCain and Caribou Barbie.

[Odin2005]

74. But most Americans aren't purist "Progressives" and so their opinion doesn't count *SARCASM*

The average Dem is a "corporatist patsy sheep" by the standards of the so-called "progressives" on DU.

If it were 1933 DUers would be calling FDR a "corporatist aristocrat" because of Joe Kennedy and Henry Monthagau, calling aspects of the New Deal "corporate welfare" and pledging their support for wannabe tyrant Huey Long.

[Chovexani]

77. BREAKING

WillPitt still in love with the smell of his own farts. In 2009.

Imagine that.

[mopinko]

82. locking- flamebait

happy april 1st.

[Zuiderelle]

84. If I were polled I would say I feel very favorably towards him. Doesn't mean I don't have criticisms

Funny how people just don't seem to grasp that we can and should constructively criticize the people we admire. I think Obama would want that.