Politics http://www.gallup.com/ http://backend.userland.com/rss Gallup WebTeam Americans view Secretary of Defense Robert Gates positively to the extent they are familiar with him. Forty-nine percent have a favorable opinion of Gates, with 19% unfavorable and 33% unsure. Though Gates is a Republican, Democrats view him more favorably than Republicans. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124175/Americans-Mostly-Favorable-Defense-Secretary-Gates.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124175/Americans-Mostly-Favorable-Defense-Secretary-Gates.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:15:00 GMT Republicans give Mike Huckabee (71%) an edge over Mitt Romney (65%) and Sarah Palin (65%) when asked if they would seriously consider voting for each as president. Huckabee and Romney have greater appeal to the broader public, though only 4 in 10 Americans say they would consider voting for either. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124097/Huckabee-Romney-Palin-See-Most-Republican-Support-12.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124097/Huckabee-Romney-Palin-See-Most-Republican-Support-12.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT About 7 out of 10 Republicans (71%) say they would seriously consider supporting Mike Huckabee for president in 2012, putting him tops on the list of likely contenders though just slightly ahead of Mitt Romney and Sarah Palin. http://www.gallup.com/video/124100/GOP-candidates-2012.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/video/124100/GOP-candidates-2012.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT More Americans now say President Barack Obama is governing from the left (54%) than expected him to do so just after the election (43%). Less than half (48%) currently think he is keeping his promises -- down from two-thirds (65%) in April. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124094/Majority-Say-Obama-Policies-Mostly-Liberal.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124094/Majority-Say-Obama-Policies-Mostly-Liberal.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:45:00 GMT One year after electing Barack Obama president, Americans are less optimistic he can achieve eight key goals measured by Gallup. However, majorities are still hopeful about four of the eight goals. http://www.gallup.com/video/124091/Americans-Less-Optimistic-Obama-Achieve-Key-Goals.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/video/124091/Americans-Less-Optimistic-Obama-Achieve-Key-Goals.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:15:00 GMT The U.S. political climate heading into 2010 is not as favorable to the Democratic Party as it was in 2006 and 2008. Though Democrats continue to have an edge in party affiliation and President Obama retains majority approval, congressional approval and satisfaction with the U.S. are low. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124076/Political-Climate-2010-Not-Favorable-Democrats.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124076/Political-Climate-2010-Not-Favorable-Democrats.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Americans are much less sure than they were a year ago at the time of his election that President Barack Obama will be able to accomplish a number of challenges facing his administration. In particular, far fewer Americans believe he will be able to heal political divisions and control federal spending. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124085/One-Year-Election-Americans-Less-Sure-Obama.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124085/One-Year-Election-Americans-Less-Sure-Obama.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Tue, 03 Nov 2009 16:30:00 GMT Close to half of black adults nationwide, 47%, say they are satisfied with the way things are going in the U.S., up from 10% in mid-2008. There has been a much smaller increase among whites -- now 22%, up from 15%. Even among Democrats, blacks show a greater increase than whites in satisfaction. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124037/Blacks-Far-More-Satisfied-U.S.-Obama.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124037/Blacks-Far-More-Satisfied-U.S.-Obama.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:30:00 GMT With the 2010 congressional elections now one year way, Gallup Editor in Chief Frank Newport discusses the key indicators to watch. http://www.gallup.com/video/124007/Editor-Chief-Insights-Watch-2010.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/video/124007/Editor-Chief-Insights-Watch-2010.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT The Democrats’ 46% to 44% advantage on the generic ballot suggests a solid Republican showing if the midterm elections were held today, assuming a typical GOP advantage in turnout. Even far in advance of the elections, the generic ballot has proven to yield reasonable insight into the U.S. House vote. http://www.gallup.com/poll/124010/Generic-Ballot-Provides-Clues-2010-Vote.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/124010/Generic-Ballot-Provides-Clues-2010-Vote.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 02 Nov 2009 04:00:00 GMT Americans are closely divided on healthcare reform, meaning that public opinion offers no real political advantage to either champions or opponents of the idea. That said, a review of Gallup polls conducted throughout the debate reveals five realities crucial to understanding public opinion on this issue. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123989/Americans-Healthcare-Reform-Five-Key-Realities.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123989/Americans-Healthcare-Reform-Five-Key-Realities.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT One year after Barack Obama’s election, Americans’ views on race relations and job discrimination against blacks are not significantly improved over what Gallup has measured in the past. Blacks remain substantially more negative than whites on both measures. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123944/Little-Obama-Effect-Views-Race-Relations.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123944/Little-Obama-Effect-Views-Race-Relations.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Thu, 29 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT A majority of Americans, 55%, have at least a fair amount of trust in President Barack Obama on healthcare reform, compared with 48% expressing trust in the Democrats in Congress and 37% trusting the Republicans in Congress. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123917/On-Healthcare-Americans-Trust-Obama-More-Than-Congress.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123917/On-Healthcare-Americans-Trust-Obama-More-Than-Congress.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:15:00 GMT More Americans choose the economy (41%) than any other issue as the top priority for Barack Obama, but that is down sharply from last November (64%). By contrast, the situations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the federal budget deficit, and healthcare have grown in perceived importance over the past year. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123899/Americans-Priorities-Vying-Obama-Attention.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123899/Americans-Priorities-Vying-Obama-Attention.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 28 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT After peaking at 59% last November, Vice President Joe Biden’s favorable rating continues to decline and now stands at 42%. That barely exceeds his 40% unfavorable rating, and continues to trail President Obama’s favorable rating. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123860/Vice-President-Biden-Favorable-Rating-Continues-Decline.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123860/Vice-President-Biden-Favorable-Rating-Continues-Decline.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 26 Oct 2009 15:45:00 GMT Conservatives continue to outnumber moderates in the American populace in 2009, 40% to 36%, confirming a finding that Gallup first noted in June. Liberals rank third at 20%. This marks a shift from 2005 through 2008, when conservatives were tied with moderates as the most prevalent group. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123854/Conservatives-Maintain-Edge-Top-Ideological-Group.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123854/Conservatives-Maintain-Edge-Top-Ideological-Group.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 26 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT The majority of Americans (61%) say President Obama did not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize, but as many Americans say they are “glad” he received it (46%) as say they are not glad (47%). Attitudes are predictably divided by partisanship. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123851/Americans-Views-Obama-Nobel-Peace-Prize.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123851/Americans-Views-Obama-Nobel-Peace-Prize.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:30:00 GMT Nearly half of Americans, 49%, expect the costs they pay for healthcare to get worse if a healthcare bill passes, up from 42% last month. More Americans now also believe their coverage and quality will get worse than did so in September. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123815/Half-Own-Costs-Worsening-Healthcare-Bill.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123815/Half-Own-Costs-Worsening-Healthcare-Bill.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT Barack Obama averaged 52.9% approval in his third quarter in office, down sharply from a 62% average in his second. That is the largest drop between those quarters for an elected president since 1953, and one of the largest quarter-to-quarter drops for any first-year president. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123806/Obama-Quarterly-Approval-Average-Slips-Nine-Points.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123806/Obama-Quarterly-Approval-Average-Slips-Nine-Points.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:00:00 GMT While the majority of Americans appear to have made up their minds on healthcare reform, 39% say their support for the final bill will depend on the details. Exactly half (50%) say they favor a public insurance option, but most (61%) would oppose reducing payments to Medicare providers. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123782/In-U.S.-39-Say-View-Healthcare-Depends-Details.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123782/In-U.S.-39-Say-View-Healthcare-Depends-Details.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT Underscoring a possible explanation for recent reports of increased gun and ammunition sales, Gallup finds 55% of gun owners and 41% of Americans overall believing that President Obama will attempt to ban the sale of guns in the U.S. while he is president. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123602/Many-Gun-Owners-Think-Obama-Will-Try-Ban-Gun-Sales.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123602/Many-Gun-Owners-Think-Obama-Will-Try-Ban-Gun-Sales.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:30:00 GMT More than 4 in 10 Americans -- 44% -- believe the use of marijuana should be legalized, while barely half say it should not be. Support for legalization is up from 36% in 2005 and now far exceeds the 31% found at the start of the decade. Politically, most of the increase is seen among Democrats. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123728/U.S.-Support-Legalizing-Marijuana-Reaches-New-High.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123728/U.S.-Support-Legalizing-Marijuana-Reaches-New-High.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 19 Oct 2009 13:15:00 GMT John Edwards’ favorable rating is 21%, a new low for him, after a steep 27-point slide from Gallup’s prior measurement in January 2008. Another former vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin, has her lowest favorable rating (40%) since she became a well-known political figure last fall. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123698/John-Edwards-Sarah-Palin-Favorable-Ratings-Slide.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123698/John-Edwards-Sarah-Palin-Favorable-Ratings-Slide.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Fri, 16 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT President Barack Obama’s favorable rating is down 22 points since January, to 56%. Meanwhile, his chief rival for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination (and current Secretary of State) Hillary Clinton has a favorable rating of 62%, little changed over the same time span. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123665/Hillary-Clinton-More-Popular-Barack-Obama.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123665/Hillary-Clinton-More-Popular-Barack-Obama.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:00:00 GMT Barack Obama’s job approval rating, which had slipped to as low as 50% last week, now stands at 56%, getting a slight bounce after the announcement of Obama's Nobel Peace Prize win on Friday. http://www.gallup.com/poll/123629/Obama-Job-Approval-56-After-Nobel-Win.aspx?CSTS=tagrss http://www.gallup.com/poll/123629/Obama-Job-Approval-56-After-Nobel-Win.aspx?CSTS=tagrss Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:45:00 GMT