Free Republic

Diplomacy: Americans were told — repeatedly — in 2008 that Barack Obama's election as president would mark a shift in how the U.S. was viewed around the world. As it turns out, that was true. In accepting the nomination of his party in 2008, candidate Obama said: "Generations from now, we will be able to look back and tell our children that this was the moment when we .. . secured our nation and restored our image as the last, best hope on earth." Two-and-a-half years into the Obama presidency, a new poll by James Zogby's Arab American Institute tells...

If Congress is unable to come to a deal to increase America's debt ceiling, more Americans will blame Republicans than will blame President Obama, says a new poll by Quinnipiac University. According to the survey, released on Thursday, 48 percent of Americans say they will blame Republicans, not President Obama, if the country's $14.3 debt limit is not raised. Thirty-four percent said they would blame Mr. Obama rather than the GOP. The poll comes on the heels of a tense round of negotiations over a deal to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, varying accounts of which describe everything from an...

One-in-five Americans (20%) say they or someone they know has bought large quantities of traditional light bulbs to use when those bulbs disappear off store shelves next year under new federal light bulb regulations. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 70% of Adults aren’t doing that themselves or don’t know anyone who is, but another 10% are not sure. The new government regulations provide for the manufacture of similar-looking bulbs that will last longer and be more energy-efficient – but also more expensive. Critics view the regulations as unnecessary government intrusion in the free market and see...

President Obama on Friday pointed to polls to argue that his proposal of a "balanced approach" on a debt deal - one that includes revenue increases as well as spending cuts - is what the American people want. "My Republican friends have said that they're not willing to do revenues, and they have repeated that on several occasions," he told reporters at a news conference in Washington. "My hope, though, is that they're listening not just to lobbyists or special interests here in Washington, but they're also listening to the American people. Because it turns out, poll after poll, many...

The number of Americans who believe the country is on the wrong track rose to 63 percent this month, up from 60 percent in June, with stubbornly high unemployment and prolonged gridlock in Washington dashing hopes of a swift economic recovery. But voters do not appear to be holding President Barack Obama responsible for the problems so far. Obama's approval rating held relatively steady at 49 percent, down 1 percentage point from June. His approval rating among independents -- a group Obama needs to win re-election -- fell to 39 percent from 44 percent. Obama's standing could deteriorate quickly if...

Voters remain strongly supportive of a free market economy over one controlled by the government and still think small businesses are hurt more than big businesses when the government does get involved. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 72% of Likely U.S. Voters believe a free market economy is better than an economy managed by the government. Just 14% think a government-managed economy is better. Another 14% are not sure.

If the election were held today, President Obama would get only 56 percent of the Jewish vote against a generic Republican candidate, down from the 78 percent he won in 2008 and less than the 74 percent John Kerry received in 2004. This is the key finding of a survey of 1,000 Jewish voters I conducted from June 20-27 using telephone and Internet interviews. After asking basic questions of the entire sample, I proceeded to drill down with more detailed questions for the Jews in the sample who identified themselves as Democrats. The overall survey has a 95 percent confidence...

Barack Obama has now been president for more than 29 months, yet in none of those months has a majority of Americans believed the nation’s economy is getting better rather than worse, according to the Gallup poll.In fact, in no month of Obama’s presidency has belief that the economy is getting better exceeded 41 percent among American adults, a peak it reached in April 2010 and again in January 2011.In the most recent three day-period reported by Gallup—July 1-July 3—only 31 percent of Americans said they believed the economy was getting better. Meanwhile, 63 percent said they believed it was getting worse. Each day, Gallup...

President Obama enjoys strong, steady support from Jewish Americans amid concerns that he faced an erosion in their backing. A new Gallup Poll found Monday that 60 percent of Jewish Americans said they approve of the way Obama is handling his job, a figure that's relatively consistent with the high level of support he's enjoyed from that bloc this year.Thirty-two percent of Jewish Americans said they disapprove of the way the president is handling his job, a figure that hasn't really jumped since May 19, when Obama delivered a major speech outlining a peace process for Israelis and Palestinians. That...

Among other poll details: —Republicans still give Romney the highest favorability rating among announced candidates, at 61 percent. Palin, who's keeping everyone guessing about her intentions, is holding steady, too, with a 63 percent favorability rating. —Bachmann's favorability rating jumped from 41 percent to 54 percent among Republicans. A third still have no opinion about her, and it's too soon to tell if her boost will endure or was a June phenomenon. —Huntsman, who announced his candidacy this week but still is relatively unknown nationally, had a 23 percent favorability rating among Republicans. He's gotten better known — 59 percent...

WASHINGTON, DC – A new Iowa poll, which shows the most recent leanings of likely Republican voters in the first-in-the-nation caucus state, has Michele Bachmann in a statistical dead heat with Mitt Romney. This morning Bachmann appeared on Chris Wallace’s Fox News Sunday and was asked “Are you a flake?” Was Wallace simply being a tough journalist, or is Fox News’ bias in favor of Mitt Romney showing? Would Wallace ask Romney, "Are you a socialist?" in reference to Romneycare. ....Romney is well known to voters because of his 2008 presidential run. Given that he has a higher national name...

LiveScience is reporting a new Gallup Poll which finds: If they were only allowed to have one child, more Americans would prefer it be a boy rather than a girl, a new survey finds. Despite the intervening woman's movement, the results are very similar to those found when the same question was asked of Americans in 1941. The Gallup polling agency asked a random sample of 1,020 American adults whether they'd prefer to have a girl or a boy if they could only chose one. Forty percent said they'd pick a boy, 28 percent said they would want a girl,...

Mitt Romney holds an eight-point lead over his Republican rivals for the White House in a survey of California voters released Monday by the Field Poll... Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani... second with 17 percent... Sarah Palin came in third... with 10 percent support. Fifty-four percent of registered California voters approve of President Obama's job performance (37 percent disapprove). Further, nearly half (49 percent) of voters there support his re-election bid...

A new Rasmussen poll shows that following the Republican debate in New Hampshire, Michele Bachmann catapulted into the number two slot as a prospective nominee behind Mitt Romney. Bachmann’s performance at the debate, her national debut as a presidential candidate, may well be seen as “A Star is Born.” She was clear, focused, principled, and beautiful and became a focal point of excitement and surprise regarding her potential as a new Republican leader and star. Many see Governor Romney as a formidable and impressive man.  And much of conventional wisdom – considering his experience, organization, money, capability, and presidential persona...

As Doug Mataconis helpfully points out over at Outside the Beltway, a new Gallup poll has tested the waters of Republican hopefuls for next year’s election and the results are in. I know each of you may have your own preferred candidate who you’d like to see at the top of the ticket, but if you want to limit President Obama to a single term, it’s time for you to get on board with the winning combination. Are you ready? Forty-four percent of registered voters say they are more likely to vote for “the Republican Party’s candidate” and 39% for...

The Wall Street Journal and NBC released a joint poll that shows 54 percent of respondents disapprove of the way President Obama is handling the economy, with 62 percent believing that the country is on the wrong track. 48 percent of respondents believe that Obama’s policies are “somewhat” responsible for the condition of the economy, while 34 percent believe his policies are “mainly or “solely” responsible. Obama's general approval has slipped under 50 percent again after getting a bounce from the killing of Osama bin Laden by U.S. forces. The economic news got no better for Obama this week.    Jobless claims...

Romney 33%... Bachmann 19%... Cain 10%  In the wake of a dazzling debate performance earlier in the week, confirmation of the positive impression made on Republican primary voters has now arrived in the form of an almost fifteen-point move for Michele Bachmann , one that has her pulled-away from the second-tier pack and now growing larger in Flipper's rear-view mirror... ________________________________________________________________ A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely GOP Primary Voters, taken following the candidates’ Monday night debate, shows Romney earning 33% support, with Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann a surprise second at 19%. Georgia businessman Herman Cain is in third place with 10% of the...

Gallup is out with new Obama Approval Numbers today showing that his bounce after the killing of Osama Bin Laden is largely gone. Perhaps the key number is that among Independents, Obama’s approval is down to 42% – close to where it was on May 1 before Bin Laden was killed (40%).

Support remains high for requiring voters to show photo identification before being allowed to cast their ballots. An increasing number of states across the country are putting that requirement into law. A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 75% of Likely U.S. Voters believe voters should be required to show photo identification such as a driver’s license before being allowed to vote. Just 18% disagree and oppose such a requirement. (To see survey question wording, click here.) Eighty-five percent (85%) of Republicans support a photo ID requirement at the polls, as do 77% of voters not affiliated with...

By 45 percent to 42 percent, likely U.S. voters said they would prefer a generic Republican candidate to President Barack Obama in a 2012 presidential matchup, according to a poll released this week by Rasmussen Reports. That’s the second week in a row Obama has “lost” to a faceless candidate.Men especially want a president from the Grand Old Party — they gave the generic candidate an eight-point boost over Obama. Middle-income voters also favored the Republican. Younger voters, not surprisingly, favored the incumbent, and the vast majority — 96 percent — of black voters also supported Obama.Importantly, though, in every...