Obama's approval rating falls in California

[alp227]

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

President Obama's job performance rating has plummeted 10 points in solidly blue California since February, an across-the-board decline that is steepest among his most fervent backers, according to the latest survey by the Field Poll.

A bare majority of California voters, just 52 percent, now approve of Obama's record in office, with 35 percent disapproving and 13 percent holding no opinion, according to the poll of 846 registered voters in the state.

The poll shows Obama has suffered the biggest erosion in support among grassroots groups including women, whose approval of the president has dropped a whopping 15 percentage points in the last five months.

Similarly, Obama's job approval ratings among registered Democrats, under-40 voters, and college graduates have declined 14 points, white non-Hispanics are down 13 points, nonpartisan voters declined 12 points, and Latinos are seven points lower in their support, the poll shows.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/politics/article/Obama-s-approval-rating-falls-in-California-4680870.php

[Moostache]

1. Wonder if the NSA tipped him off about THIS? (n/t)

[JDPriestly]

18. The NSA scandal caused this!

Obama needs to take action to reign in the NSA. He is the only person who really can. He is in his second term and has nothing to lose in terms of politics. Somebody has to do something before we don't have a Constitution or a democracy. The NSA is way out of control. Should they watch for terrorists? Yes. Should they be collecting and storing our metadata? No. That is not the job of government. And I would favor laws prohibiting one company from selling metadata to another company.

[Android3.14]

20. Hell yes!

If the gov shouldn't do it, then neither should companies. Effin bastards.

[crim son]

37. +1 n/t

[Ash_F]

2. Dems did this to themselves.

2014 another wasted opportunity.

[truedelphi]

29. many people in The Golden State will not vote for any politicians,

regardless of label, who keep the Federal DEA, DOJ and ICE on the backs of people (usually in poor neighborhoods) for growing pot.

often the people that are arrested have the state-issued right to grow a certain amount of plants.

Obama should be busy re-considering his thoughts on letting Larry "Big Crook" Summers occupy the spot that Bernanke has held at the fed Reserve.

If Obama cared at all about the middle class, he would appoint one of the few honest people he has used as a top financial watch dog, Neal Barofsky, to head the Fed.

Of course, that would make everyone on Wall Street shit their pants, but they certainly have the money to afford Depends.

[Arctic Dave]

3. Good job Obama.

Another f up by him.

[SunSeeker]

4. Holy crap, how is he going to get re-elected with those numbers?

[FiveGoodMen]

5. You mean, "How is another Dem going to win the White House after Obama's dismal performance?"

[SunSeeker]

7. Nope, not what I mean. And Obama's performance is far from "dismal."

The Dems who run will have the benefit of some major accomplishments: ACA, end of DODT/DOMA and the Iraq War, saving the auto industry, putting progressives on the Supreme Court...to name just a few.

[FiveGoodMen]

9. I'm sure there are mafia leaders who give to charity and are kind to their mothers

between orders to have their enemies killed.

That does not make their activities acceptable.

[SunSeeker]

10. So now Obama is a mafia leader and ending the Iraq War is a mere kindness to his mother?

[FiveGoodMen]

11. Ending the Iraq war doesn't make up for escalating the Afghan one.

And you knew what I meant so don't play dumb.

[SunSeeker]

13. He promised in 2008 to amp up the Afghan War and he kept his promise.

He took out Bin Laden and now he is planning a withdrawal from Afghanistan, sooner than originally planned. You have a problem with that?

[JoePhilly]

15. Amazing how many of the disgruntled don't know that fact. nt

[John2]

14. That don't mean

start a War somewhereelse. He needed to stop with the CPI stuff also and inviting the Republicans to the Whitehouse for tea and backdoor deals. He should have just put the screws on them and pressure Harry Reid to resign as leader of the Senate. They could have at gotten more done with Judicial selections if they had gotten rid of the filibuster in the Senate.

If I was him, I would be doing as much as I can to destroy the neocon agenda as my legacy period. I would close Guantanimo right now and fire every neocon advisor in my Administration. He still have over three years left and is not a lame duck. At least he can be damaging the Republican agenda with the power he holds. Do the same thing the Republicans do when Democrats dominated Congress. Put them in jail if they break any laws. I can think of a few laws to have Issa, and some of their represenatives behind bars by now. Some of them might be treason.

[SunSeeker]

21. He did "stop with the CPI stuff." What war did Obama start "somewhereelse"? nt

[sabrina 1]

38. So long as there are mercenaries and ten thousand troops in Iraq, that 'war', invasion for

resources would be a better way to describe it, is not over. Have you read the news from Iraq lately?

[SunSeeker]

44. The troops/contractors are not involved in combat. Iraq is a hell hole, not doubt about it.

But Bush is the one who created that hell hole, not Obama.

[sabrina 1]

45. We should get everyone out of there and shut down the bases, that is what those unfortunate

people want. We don't belong there, why is there a single troop in that country? And why are we preparing for yet another war where we don't belong? Why are we sending arms to extremists, Al Queda, in Syria?

Nothing has or will change re our foreign policies, it hasn't for decades until we get a true Progressive Democratic Congress, which is where Dems hopefully will focus from now on and forget the WH race, the WH apparently, or so we are told, has no power. So why bother with it then? Congress is where we need to expend energy, time and money.

[SunSeeker]

46. The WH is crucial if for no other reason than SCOTUS appointments.

But I totally agree about the need to expend energy, time and money on Congress to get Dems elected.

[Doctor_J]

26. The party is going to take a huge hit because of him

His long list of broken promises from 2008 will have millions of potential long-term Dems staying home, like they did in 2010. Nominating HRC in 2016 might serve to get enough women to the polls to retain the WH though. But Obama's failure to deliver on any liberal legislation, and his capitulation on so many issues, together with his embrace of pot prosecutions, school profitization, torture, drone murder, for-profit health care, SS and Medicare cuts, and so on, will have a disastrous effect on voter enthusiasm.

[cstanleytech]

32. The whitehouse isnt an issue, the real issue is that many focus on it

and or on congress and the senate when they should be focused on the state level as its at the state level of government that districts are created and defined which is what the republicans did.
It took them decades but by slowly taking power at the state level they have managed to gerrymander the districts and break up alot of formerly democratic strongholds and make new republican ones.

[hughee99]

8. My thought exactly.

The reason people always think presidents will do so much in their second term is because they don't have to plan for their next election.

[Doctor_J]

25. You'd think as a lame duck he would (finally) try to work for the people who voted for him

too much to ask, I guess

[SunSeeker]

28. Ending the Iraq War and getting the ACA passed was not working "for the people who voted for him"?

Right now the Republicans control the House and can block anything in the Senate with a silent filibuster. What is Obama not doing that he could be doing under the circumstances?

[truedelphi]

30. The USA was told by the Iraqi government to leave the country!

Besides, the American people's appetite to keep fighting that war was worn down.

As far as the ACA, it is a terrible give away to Big Insurers. Although not without its benefits to certain people: Liz Fowler went on to a very high position at Wellpoint after she and Rahm Emanuel fashioned the legalese aspect of the 2,000 plus page bill. And Rahm himself will never have to worry about campaign contributions after what he did for the "Health" Industry.

[SunSeeker]

36. So? We didn't leave because they asked, they've been asking for a decade.

As far as the ACA, it will save my brother's life, covering him for a pre-existing condition that prevented him from getting insurance his entire adult life. If we continued to make perfect the enemy of the good, he still would not have insurance, and we would continue to have 40,000 people die each year due to lack of health coverage. The ACA is a good first step that we can build on if we get a Democratic House.

[sabrina 1]

39. It isn't doing much for my sister who was diagnosed with cancer. I was hoping it would, but sadly

it offers no help to her. She has had to leave her job, lost her coverage, and is now having to pay her own, she is not entitled to any benefits to help and if her family had not helped, was about to have to leave her home to move in with relatives.

Yes, it did a few good things, but the majority of the people will not be any better off than they were before. The Ins Corps however were saved from going out of business, unfortunately.

[SunSeeker]

41. Unfortunately, the ACA doesn't kick in for most adults until 2014.

I'm sorry to hear about your sister. I realize the ACA is not kicking in soon enough for her. I hope she gets through this.

And you are right, the majority of people will not feel much of a difference, other than probably lower premiums, since they already have insurance coverage through their employer.

The Ins Corps were not in danger of doing out of business, but 40,000 Americans were dying each year because they did not have health coverage. Yes, it was was a gift to Ins Corps in the sense that they had an increased customer base; but they also now have obligations to spend that money on actual medical treatment, and not kick people off when they get sick. The most significant gift was (will be) to the families of the 40,000 Americans who will not die each year, once the ACA fully kicks in.

[Doctor_J]

31. We still have thousands of troops in Iraq, and the wars elsewhere rage on

He promised during the campaign that any HC bill he signed would have a public option. The Pentagon budget is still three (or so) times what it needs to be. He delayed employer mandates of the ACA, but not the individual mandates So no.

And if he is so weak that he can do nothing, then why should anyone bother to vote? Does he need the Senate's approval to stop prosecuting pot dispensaries? Does he need their permission to START prosecuting banksters?

"They won't let me" is a really bad campaign slogan.

[cstanleytech]

33. I dont like that Obama wasnt able to keep alot of his promises

but facts are facts and the fact is congress is and has always been the branch of government with the power of the purse which means they get the final say in the end on how the money is spent.
A president can veto a spending bill sure but a veto can be overridden.

[SunSeeker]

35. We do not have combat troops in Iraq. Afghanistan is winding down. What "wars" are raging?

And what "campaign slogan"? He's not running for reelection.

He is doing what he can with executive orders, particularly with regard to the EPA, and being pillaried for it as a "dictator" by the right.

I disagree with him on the pot dispensary prosecutions and lack of bankster prosecutions, but he is still correct on the things that matter most to me, namely women's rights, ending the Iraq War, getting the uninsured covered and getting progressives on the Supreme Court. No candidate is perfect, and I can't imagine any reason for a Dem to vote for the Republican candidate or not vote at all.

Why would you not bother to vote just because the outgoing Dem candidate is being blocked by the GOP? That is all the more reason to vote and flip the house, so the next Dem President can get major initiatives passed.

[sabrina 1]

40. we have an army of 'contractors' or more correctly, mercenaries in Iraq. Why do you think they are

there? The thousands of troops are there to guard our bases and the biggest 'embassy' ever built anywhere in the history of the world. They are also there because in order to keep the mercenaries there, our law requires that troops be present in the country as these 'mercenaries' are supposed to be 'support' for the troops.

And now we're getting ready for the next war, also based on false claims.

[SunSeeker]

43. They are not in Iraq to wage war. And Obama is not trying to start another war.

In fact, Obama is being lambasted by the right for "leading from behind" and not moving on Syria.

[Wilms]

6. Perhaps they've converted to racism.

[Le Taz Hot]

12. Think it has anything to do with this?

California Democratic Party Tells Obama To Halt Medical Marijuana Raids - RawStory

<snip>

The California Democratic Party approved a resolution over the weekend that called on President Barack Obama to halt federal raids on marijuana dispensaries.

The resolution, sponsored by the Brownie Marie Democratic Club of Riverside County, noted that 18 states and the District of Columbia had legalized the use of marijuana for medical purposes, while Colorado and Washington state had legalized the use of marijuana for recreational purposes.

Citing the disproportionate number of ethnic minorities jailed over marijuana, the resolution urged Obama to order the federal government to abide by state laws regarding the drug.


<snip>

More: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/07/22/california-democratic-party-tells-obama-to-halt-medical-marijuana-raids/

[Iliyah]

16. MJ is a factor I agree

and the closer we get to 2014 I would not be surprised if the Feds start advising that MJ should become legal. The good stuff really does help sick people. As to 846 people polled - BS

[former9thward]

23. How many should they have polled?

[Socal31]

24. Unfortunately MJ will not be made legal.

There is waaaaay too much money made by law enforcement, judges, prisons, guards, Border Patrol agents, Homeland Security, prosecutors, Big Pharma, etc. The UN does not want it legalized, either.

The best we can hope for is a re-scheduling. Methamphetamine being Schedule II and MJ being Schedule I is beyond ridiculous. I hope the administration takes a stand on the way out. They can tell GlaxoSmithPhizerLily to screw off, and allow people nationally to receive recommendations for MMJ.

[SoapBox]

17. How would the poll be if he was compaired to....

Bush?

Mitt Witt?

Paul?

any other various TeaPukingBagger types?


I'll stick with Prez O.

[Purveyor]

19. Not surprised. Even the tone here on DU of long time posters and supporters would suggest

there is some discontent within the ranks, myself included.

That said, I'm sticking by him but will not hesitate to be critical when warranted, i.e. NSA surveillance.

[24601]

22. NSA reports up two Chains of Command. As Director of a Combat Support Agency, NSA's Director

reports through the Under Secretary of Defense (Intelligence) to Secretary of Defense Hagel. As a National Intelligence Agency, the NSA Director reports to Director of National Intelligence Clapper. Both Hagel and Clapper are direct reports to the President and both were appointed to their positions by President Obama.

The Executive Branch of the United States government, including NSA, follows the directions of the President. It's not Bush's NSA, Clinton's NSA or even Truman's NSA. And while it's not Obama's NSA in the sense of it goes into his stock portfolio, it's his authority under which it operates.

The responsibility accompanies the oath of office.

[savalez]

27. 60% approval in the Bay Area.

65% approval from Blacks and Asians.
57% approval rating statewide.

Sounds pretty good considering the approval rating of Congress itself. What is that, like single digits?

[MjolnirTime]

34. He's not running for reelection.

but I can see you still want to rehash that.

[Amonester]

42. And if he was, he would still win over any other Rmoney of theiR's

And way over 52% again.