Pollsters vary in their findings, and Rasmussen’s polls don’t always agree with Gallup’s — but this clearly shows a steep drop in support for the present incarnation of President Barack Obama’s economic stimulus plan:
Support for the economic recovery plan working its way through Congress has fallen again this week. For the first time, a plurality of voters nationwide oppose the $800-billion-plus plan.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 37% favor the legislation, 43% are opposed, and 20% are not sure.
Two weeks ago, 45% supported the plan. Last week, 42% supported it.
Opposition has grown from 34% two weeks ago to 39% last week and 43% today.
Sixty-four percent (64%) of Democrats still support the plan. That figure is down from 74% a week ago. Just 13% of Republicans and 27% of those not affiliated with either major party agree.
Seventy-two percent (72%) of Republicans oppose the plan along with 50% of unaffiliated voters and 16% of Democrats.
The two main shifts seem to be the continued mobilization of GOPers back to the party line as articulated by members of Congress and talk show hosts. Some will say it shows how easy it is to push a button and turn on the partisanship light. The other is the erosion in support from independent voters.
Just as George Bush couldn’t be successful morphing from a Texas governor who was popular among people of both parties, Obama will need to retain his bipartisan appeal to succeed. It has also been evident in recent weeks that — so far, at least — Obama has not used the bully pulpit and all of the tools at his disposal to clamor (not ask) for the bill’s passage and/or to get Democrats to seriously fine tune it and peel off some of the Republican opposition.
Look for a VERY unhappy day at the stock market if this comes to a vote and fails to pass or is fillbustered and doesn’t come to a vote.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.