MediaMatters: A new poll from Quinnipiac University is making headlines this week. Why? Because it shows Obama’s approval rating at a low point of 42 percent. And when a single poll (and possibly outlier) shows Obama’s approval rating going down, that’s news!
News organizations all agree: The Quinnipiac poll is a big deal. But for context, here’s a look at all the Obama approval rating polling results currently listed at PollingReport.com, for the month of March:
CBS: 49%
CNN: 51%
Fox: 49:%
CNN: 50%
ABC/Washington Post: 51%
Allstate/National Journal: 49%
Bloomberg: 51%
Ipsos/Reuters: 49%
And here’s a very recent result, not listed by PollingReport.com:
Gallup: 49% (see today’s poll)
For the month of March, Obama’s approval rating has been quite consistent (average: 50%), just as it’s been for nearly the last 18 months. But when the Quinnipiac poll came out and broke with that trend, and broke with the trend in a negative direction, suddenly that single poll was big news.
Thank you for the link majii 😉
The Obama Diary 
I’ve never heard of Quinnipac until just now.
Still, no one asked ME.
Exactly, tally! I’ve been a democrat since 1972, and none of the pollsters has EVAH called me to ask me anything about any democrat. This is why I take polls with a box of salt!
I have a horse salt lick in my house.
😉
🙂
Just typical, Ms Chips. Doesn’t even surprise me any longer, we just have to try to keep the truth out there, somehow. Forwarding your excellent material to as many people as possible is a good start! Thanks again for all you do.
Ah, thank you Andogriff – facts are pesky things! 😉
WE JUST GOTTA STAY FOCUSED…DONT PUT EVERYTHING INTO WHAT THE POLLS SAY… WE MUST KEEP PUTTING THE TRUTH OUT THERE…THE TRUTH WILL SET US FREE…NO DOUBT!!!
Quinnipac pollsters called my house this month and am proud to be in the 42% who gave my president high job approval. Now they can Kiss My Squirmish.
YAY! Finally, one of us was polled!! So happy, about time.
ROFL, LOL
I was polled by them in 2006, during midterms.
OT: 2.7 million people tuned in to PBO’s town hall on Univision.
http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/03/29/more-than-2-7-million-tune-in-to-univision%E2%80%99s-landmark-education-town-hall-with-president-barack-obama/87581?utm_campaign=WP%3ETwitter&utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitter
Wow. That is fabulous. Thanks Proud.
I’ve been called several times by Gallup over the years, but never by Quinnipiac or Rasmussen. Plus, in one of the articles I read about the Quinnipiac poll, the questions were convoluted, and asked for more than one opinion in the same sentence. It would be confusing for low information people. Besidess that Quinnipiac is not the polling place that springs to mind when you want to check the polls. But MSNBC and other media ALWAYS try to find the poll with the lowest opinion of the President. So I always check the other polls to be reassured. This time I went to Gallup which was up.
It sounds like Rasmussen only call Republicans, Virginia:
Rasmussen Reports was founded by pollster Scott Rasmussen in 2003 … The Center For Public Integrity has claimed that Scott Rasmussen was a paid consultant for the 2004 George W. Bush campaign.
After Election night last year, Silver concluded that Rasmussen’s polls were the least accurate of the major pollsters in 2010, having an average error of 5.8 points and a pro-Republican bias of 3.9 points according to Silver’s model. He singled out as an example the Hawaii Senate Race, which Rasmussen showed the incumbent 13 points ahead, where he in actuality won by 53 – a difference of 40 points, or “the largest error ever recorded in a general election in FiveThirtyEight’s database, which includes all polls conducted since 1998.”
TIME has described Rasmussen Reports as a “conservative-leaning polling group”. According to Charles Franklin, a University of Wisconsin political scientist who co-developed Pollster.com, “He [Rasmussen] polls less favorably for Democrats, and that’s why he’s become a lightning rod.” Franklin also said: “It’s clear that his results are typically more Republican than the other person’s results.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rasmussen_Reports#Criticism
dirt bags. What I want to know is, why in the H. do they have to do polls every friggin day. It is ridiculous.
Think about the amount of money they are spending. Where does their money come from to do this much polling? Maybe there is a dirty little secret involved. Plus, we know that questions can be manipulated and the manner in which the question is stated can produce varying result.
Just a thought:
President Obama is much like the philosopher king that Plato speaks of in Book VI of The Republic who guides the ship of state by being aware of all of the variables around him, while many of his detractors are like those who cannot appreciate this ability because they do not understand it.
Our PBO has already written his version of a Republic in The Audacity of Hope.
Sometimes I am almost overwhelmed with gratitude when I think of how much he is willing and able to share his many talents with us.
Here is another poll with the pres at 50%, the quotes in this AP poll are basically what we all feel. Sure, things aren’t great,but given the ginormous craphole he inherited and the pathetic camera hogs in congress- the Pres is doing his best. http://www.seattlepi.com/national/1110ap_us_ap_poll_obama_and_economy.html?source=rss
Notice what the title is ” Americans souring on economy” Not the fact that the pres approval is the same as roughly a month ago OR the fact that voters don’t blame him OR the fact that half says he deserves re-election OR the fact that twice as many say he understands the needs of the country better than the GOoPers.
These media people are pathetic, I ‘m getting squirmish just thinking about it. *Sidenote why does my spell check not recognize the word squirmish, and keeps putting a bright red line underneath the word- flipping elitist computers:)
Thank you for the facts.
Whenever he speaks directly to the people, his numbers goes up. Always. I really don’t get the strategy of not having him do these speeches once a week.
But he does – somewhere – but the GOP-owned media doesn’t cover it. All we’re left with are is the video feed on whitehouse.gov
and that SUCKS.
When the numbers are below fifty percent who cares. It is just a sample in a given time. If the sampling is conducted honestly at all time it might be a factor. Barack Obama’s polling is always 100% with me any second of the day.
Mae, he is always 100% with me too. Even from across the pond I love, respecgt and totally trust your wonderful president
sorry, that should be ‘respect’ not respecgt. Finger trouble lol!
Thanks Sam for your support of PBO.
This poll was taken between March 22 to March 28 before President Obama’s speech People were just finding out about the Libyan air strikes. They are still higher then Clinton’s or Reagan’s at this point
So absolutely true, Debra!!!
What is interesting is that so many people have given up their land line and use cell phones. Especially the younger population. These polls are done with land lines. It doesn’t give us true figures and it changes constantly. There are polls that are bias and difficult with the working to make a difference with the outcomes.
yep corporate msm sucks. potus been at 50+% for months now.
I honestly thought it would be worse than 42% with the beating he took over the previous two weeks. Great to see those other polls. The President is holding steady. Like BWD said his numbers always improve when he talk directly to the public. I am so happy the campaign is about to begin. All he need to win is 51% of the vote.
I want to know alittle bit more about Quinnipiac poll, and the question they asked and how they asked it. Then I would give them my phone number and suggest they to give me a call once and a while. I will be doing alittle research about QU.
I’ve been looking at the internals of that Quinnipac poll on their website, according to their statistics people of liberal and moderate political views still support the President,am not a polling expert but would be very interested to see the weighting in the poll regarding D’s, R’s and I’s hmmmmm. There were 34 questions asked in the poll, would also be very interested in finding out who commissioned it.
If I remember fro 2008, Quinnipac is one that has limited scope and limited validity. It must always be explained in context.