Obama’s Approval Index Hits Zero

For the first time in his administration, President Obama’s “approval index”–the difference between the number of likely voters who strongly approve of his performance and the number who strongly disapprove, as measured by the Rasmussen survey–has reached zero, with both figures at 34%:

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Obama enjoyed a brief bounce after the Sonia Sotomayor nomination was announced–coming mainly, I believe, from Hispanic voters–but the downward trend quickly resumed. This is a bit puzzling as the President is in the midst of an overseas trip accompanied by the usual fawning publicity. Maybe some voters are reacting to Sotomayor’s “wise Latina” shtick; maybe his Cairo speech didn’t go over so well; maybe the declining trend reflects concerns about Obama’s economic policies, which have never been popular regardless of his personal approval numbers.

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