I found this article at rasmussenreports.com and thought that it was rather interesting, especially the first part, I dont know if you guys are interested in it but I thought id post it anyway. And if you dont want to read it here, here is the link that I pulled it from.
Friday, August 20, 2010
The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 25% of the nation's voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as president. Forty-four percent (44%) Strongly Disapprove, giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -19 (see trends).
If Israel attacks Iran, 51% of voters say the U.S. should help Israel. Two percent (2%) say the U.S. should help Iran and 35% say the U.S. should do nothing.
Eighty-two percent (82%) believe that voters should be required to show photo ID before voting.
Yesterday’s negative news on employment confirms data released earlier this month as the Rasmussen Employment Index showed confidence in the labor market has fallen to the lowest level since January.
Platinum Members can review the president’s ratings on the economy, national security and other issues. They also get a sneak peek at upcoming data.
The Presidential Approval Index is calculated by subtracting the number who Strongly Disapprove from the number who Strongly Approve. It is updated daily at 9:30 a.m. Eastern (sign up for free daily e-mail update). Updates are also available on Twitter and Facebook.
Overall, 45% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of the president's performance. Fifty-four percent (54%) disapprove.
A commentary by Howard Rich looks at a “disturbing hypocrisy emerging from within the ‘establishment’ wing of the Republican Party lately – a belief that it’s okay to work against fiscal conservatives who garner the support of the vast majority of GOP voters.”
For an Election 2010 overview, visit the Rasmussen Reports Election 2010 Balance of Power Senate summary and our Gubernatorial Scorecard. New polling has been released this morning from Arkansas and Wyoming.
Scott Rasmussen and Doug Schoen have written a new book, MAD AS HELL: How the Tea Party Movement Is Fundamentally Remaking Our Two-Party System . The Harper-Collins publication can be pre-ordered at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Borders, and other outlets.
A Rasmussen video report shows that voters hate Congressional incumbents and they aren’t wild about their own representative either.
Other data shows that just 22% believe Members of Congress care what their constituents think. Sixty percent (60%) disagree. Seventy-one percent (71%) say purpose of town hall meetings is for Members of Congress to listen, not speak.
Just 37% of voters believe their own representative in Congress deserves to be re-elected. Thirty-nine percent disagree. Just 27% say their own representative is the best person for the job. Overall, 62% say it would be better for the country if most incumbents are defeated in November. Sixty-five percent (65%) of voters are angry at the policies of the federal government.
In a book released earlier this year, Scott Rasmussen observes that, "The gap between Americans who want to govern themselves and politicians who want to rule over them may be as big today as the gap between the colonies and England during the 18th century." In Search of Self-Governance is available at Rasmussen Reports and Amazon.com.
If you'd like Scott to speak at your conference or event, contact Premiere Speakers Bureau.
Scott has published several recent Wall Street Journal columns including "Why Obama Can't Move the Health Care Numbers" and how Obama won the White House by campaigning like Ronald Reagan. He has also written an overview of the health care reform debate, a look at how President Obama is losing independent voters, and was the first to note the decline in the president's approval ratings.
You can also learn about Scott's favorite place on earth and his time working with hockey legend Gordie Howe.
The Rasmussen Reports Media Meter shows that media coverage of President Obama has been 52% positive over the past week.
It is important to remember that the Rasmussen Reports job approval ratings are based upon a sample of likely voters. Some other firms base their approval ratings on samples of all adults. President Obama's numbers are always several points higher in a poll of adults rather than likely voters. That's because some of the president's most enthusiastic supporters, such as young adults, are less likely to turn out to vote. It is also important to check the details of question wording when comparing approval ratings from different firms.
Rasmussen Reports has been a pioneer in the use of automated telephone polling techniques, but many other firms still utilize their own operator-assisted technology (see methodology). Pollsters for Presidents Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton have cited our "unchallenged record for both integrity and accuracy."
The Pew Center noted that Rasmussen Reports beat traditional media in covering Scott Brown's upset win in Massachusetts earlier this year: "It was polling-not journalistic reporting-that caught the wave in the race to succeed Massachusetts Senator Edward M. Kennedy." Rasmussen Reports was also the first to show Joe Sestak catching Arlen Specter in the Pennsylvania Democratic Primary race this year.
In the 2009 New Jersey Governor's race, automated polls tended to be more accurate than operator-assisted polling techniques. On reviewing the state polling results from 2009, Mickey Kaus offered this assessment, "If you have a choice between Rasmussen and, say, the prestigious N.Y. Times, go with Rasmussen!"
In 2008, Obama won 53%-46% and our final poll showed Obama winning 52% to 46%. While we were pleased with the final result, Rasmussen Reports was especially pleased with the stability of our results. On every single day for the last six weeks of the campaign, our daily tracking showed Obama with a stable and solid lead attracting more than 50% of the vote.
We also have provided a summary of our 2008 state-by-state presidential results for your review.
In 2004 George W. Bush received 50.7% of the vote while John Kerry earned 48.3%. Rasmussen Reports polling projected that Bush would win 50.2% to 48.5%. We were the only firm to project both candidates' totals within half a percentage point by (see our 2004 results).
See also our 2008 state results for Senate and governor.
See 2006 results for Senate and Governor.
Daily tracking results are collected via telephone surveys of 500 likely voters per night and reported on a three-day rolling average basis. The margin of sampling error-for the full sample of 1,500 Likely Voters--is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Results are also compiled on a full-week basis and crosstabs for full-week results are available for Platinum Members.
Like all polling firms, Rasmussen Reports weights its data to reflect the population at large (see methodology). Among other targets, Rasmussen Reports weights data by political party affiliation using a dynamic weighting process. While partisan affiliation is generally quite stable over time, there are a fair number of people who waver between allegiance to a particular party or independent status. Since the November 2008 election, the number of Democrats in the country has declined while the number of unaffiliated voters has grown.
Our baseline targets are established based upon separate survey interviews with a sample of adults nationwide completed during the preceding three months (a total of 45,000 interviews) and targets are updated monthly. Currently, the baseline targets for the adult population are 35.3% Democrats, 32.3% Republicans, and 32.4% unaffiliated. Likely voter samples typically show a slightly smaller advantage for the Democrats.
A review of last week's key polls is posted each Saturday morning.
Other stats on Obama are updated daily on the Rasmussen Reports By The Numbers page.
We also invite you to review other recent demographic highlights from the tracking polls. To get a sense of longer-term trends, check out our month-by-month review of the president's numbers.
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Originally Posted by Dave68124
-- jim
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