Poll: Obama facing high expectations
[cnn-photo-caption image= http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2008/POLITICS/11/13/poll.obama/art.obama.bush.gi.jpg caption=" Most people believe President-elect Barack Obama will change America when he takes over from his predecessor."]WASHINGTON (CNN) - The overall public mood may still be sour at the moment, but a new national poll suggests that most Americans think Barack Obama will make major accomplishments as president of the United States.
Nearly two-thirds of those questioned in a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. survey released Thursday said President-elect Obama will change the country for the better. Twenty-five percent said he won't change the country either way, and only 9 percent indicated they think Obama will change the country for the worse.
"The bar is being set awfully high for an Obama presidency," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.
According to the poll, most people think it's likely that Obama will improve race relations, improve economic conditions, bring stability to the financial markets, make the United States safer from terrorism, reduce the country's dependence on foreign oil, reduce global warming, win the war in Afghanistan, and remove U.S. troops from Iraq without causing a major upheaval in that country.
"That's a pretty big to-do list," said Holland.
In a question separate from whether Obama will change the country for the better, 76 percent of poll respondents said the country will be better off four years from now, while 19 percent say it will be worse.
Three-quarters of those polled also have a favorable view of Obama, up 12 points since the election. Among black Americans the number was 99 percent, while among Republicans it was 41 percent.
The overall 75 percent favorable rating "makes Obama the most popular president-elect in at least a quarter of a century," Holland said.
In November of 1980, after his landslide victory over incumbent President Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan's favorable rating was 67 percent. Eight years later, the elder George Bush had a favorable rating of only 50 percent immediately after his win in the 1988 election. When Bill Clinton beat Bush
four years later, his favorable rating was 60 percent just after the election.
And after the Florida recount ended in December of 2000, George W. Bush had a 59 percent favorable rating.
The CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll was conducted November 6-9, with 1,246 adult Americans questioned by telephone. The survey's sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
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He is going to do it easely !!! And if he does half of it is still great !!! God bless our next president and god bless America!!!
If anyone can do it, the Obama/Biden team can. YES WE CAN
HE WILL DELIVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
CHANGE HAS COME TO AMERICA!!
I disagree. I think the bar for an Obama presidency is low to non-existant. His supporters don't require anything of him. The media doesn't require anything of him.
Where's the bar here?
Tall order. Most would crack under that kind of pressure. Lets hope that Obama isn't like most.
Things can only get better after 8 years of the shrub.
And he will. But all you critics need to understand we didn't get in this mess over night, it took 8 years of that incompetent bush admin to get us here so give Obama a chance to turn this thing around.
Foremost congress must have Obama show his valid birth certificate, since he will not show to the courts regarding lawsuits in various states.
May god guide and protect you Mr. President-elect! Putting America back on a viable economic track will be a tall order and racial divide will be just as difficult. You are definitely the messenger of change as America's demography will continue to evolve and in 40 years Latinos and us mutts will predominate. Watch out for Bobby Jindal (Rep) of pure East Indian extraction after Obama's tenure. Next a Latina (yes a Latin American woman). GET USED TO IT!!!
The only people expecting HIGH expectations are the GOP. They will love to see President Obama fail. But the bad news for the GOP is that no matter what President Obama does, he will not go down in hstory as the wort president EVER. They can look at their own party and place the blame on themselves.
And Obama CAN do it, as long as the media gets off his back, and the people give him a chance and have some patience..e ven the world wasnt created in one day and Obama isnt even God...Give him time and a chance people..why is everyone expecting so much more from Obama than any other president ??????????
i wish him luck, but im a realist and the reality is, he more than likely can`t keep alot of his campain promises.after all he is not only a polititian but a lawyer as well. 2 jobs known to be crooks having them as well as well trained liars. just as any president before him. all polititians lie even if they dont mean to at the time. you can`t make everyone happy at the same time therefor you can`t always get what you want.
Dubya has set the bar SO low that expecting ANYTHING intelligent and positive out of the next POTUS is of course considered 'high expectations'!!!
When you've had an idiot for a leader for 8 years, it's not hard to have high expectations of a Harvard Law Graduate and a man who doesn't create new and stupid words as he talks.
Those who said no change or change for worst must be the Republicans.....
Why does Obama resign his Senate seats so early? He is still needed in Senate.. Transition can be done concurrently.
Thank God ....something in the Ticker finally....that isn't about Palin. You guys at CNN have really been flogging a dead horrse ad nauseum !!!!!
The man is only human. Let's not forget that. Good things may come but change will be slow: it took 8 years for the mess we are all in to be created: it'll take some time to fix.
Let's not measure Obama's success by the rappidity of change but by the lasting beneficial quality of the changes he causes.
hope everything goes well he'll make it
I HAVE FAITH IN PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA, HE'S GOT THE BEST OF THE BEST WORKING FOR HIM. HE'S GOING TO CLEAN HOUSE, THAT'S FOR SURE!!
You know what all the things listed above can be done by any competent President. Its not that the bar is set high is that over the past 40 years we have had only one competent President – Clinton; all the others were average or below average. THAT'S A FACT
yes. Everybody expects something. He will have very hard time to make happy everyone, and he will not. No one can. He will have to make compromises. I hope he will be able to satisfy most of people. I do not envy him his task.
He will need a lot of smart, skilled people to help him. He cannot do it all alone.
Some people expect miracles to happen, well, these happen only in fairy tales, movies, books. In real life we do sacrifice, compromise, we do have to work hard, and think well to get what we want.
That's a pretty big to-do list," said Holland.
Well, it's what he promised to do, and why he was elected. Time to see if he's just talk, or can walk the walk.
It's nice to be able to now say we have a president that we can *trust* and support, instead of just supporting our president because we love our country. I have faith in Obama that he will make the right decisions and he will bring great and exciting things to our country! I cannot wait to see him sworn in on January 20th.
Here it goes, the man hasn't even taken office yet and the Liberal Media is already making excuses for him!
From what I recall, these are all issues he chose to take on!
Apparently all 9% of those who think Obama will change things for the worse post here... about socialism and Marxism... repeatedly.... over, and over, and over, and.....
As long as expectations are realistic, I believe President-Elect Obama can meet them. Folks just have to understand that one man alone can't save us. And, that we all have to do our part to build this country back up.