A new Economist/YouGov poll is full of bad news for President Obama and incumbents broadly.
Just 30 percent of respondents approve of President Obama’s handling of the Gulf spill, while 45 percent disapprove. And while there is little public trust in BP or Halliburton, respondents generally believe that drilling is safe and accidents unusual (53 percent), and that growing the economy through drilling is as or more important than protecting the environment by limiting new wells (83 percent). Only 17 percent say protecting the environment outweighs economic concerns.
The poll shows broad pessimism about the prospects for economic growth, with most saying that the stock market will lose value or stagnate (22 and 38 percent, respectively), and more saying the economy is getting worse (33 percent) than getting better (27 percent). Moreover, despite the passage by Democrats of a spate of spending marketed as “stimulus” and “jobs” bills, just 23 percent of respondents thinks there will be more jobs 6 months from now.
President Obama’s overall approval continues to hover under 50 percent, and his “approval index” sits at -13:
Strongly approve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21%
Somewhat approve. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24%
Somewhat disapprove. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15%
Strongly disapprove. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34%
Not sure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6%
Obama also faces big approval gaps on issues like health-care (-19), the economy (-24), the budget deficit (-30) and immigration (-32).
And then there is this:
37. Do you think Barack Obama…
Says what he believes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47%
Says what he thinks people want to hear. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53%
Full results here.