Obama's Poll Numbers Continue Plunge, Driven by Healthcare

Thursday, August 13, 2009 12:30 PM

By: Jim Meyers

President Barack Obama's approval rating continues to plunge — only 47 percent of voters say they at least somewhat approve of his job performance, the lowest figure yet recorded, a poll by Rasmussen Reports reveals.

Obama's approval rating has declined steadily since it stood at 65 percent when he took office.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Thursday discloses that just 29 percent of likely voters now strongly approve of Obama's performance, while 37 percent strongly disapprove.

That gives the president a Presidential Approval Index of minus-8. That Index is computed by subtracting the "strongly disapprove" figure from the "strongly approve" percentage.

Most troubling for the Democrats, perhaps, is that 65 percent of independent voters now disapprove of Obama's performance.

Among the findings of the latest Rasmussen poll:

Support for the healthcare reform plan proposed by Obama and congressional Democrats has fallen to a new low — just 42 percent favor the plan, while 53 percent oppose it.

In the Virginia governor's race, Republican Bob McDonnell has a 9-point lead over Democrat R. Creigh Deeds — 47 percent of respondents said they would vote for McDonnell if the election were held today, 38 percent chose Deeds, and the rest would choose another candidate or are undecided.

In the New Jersey governor's race, incumbent Democrat Jon Corzine trails Republican Chris Christie by 13 percentage points.

In Pennsylvania, Republican-turned-Democratic Sen. Arlen Specter trails Republican challenger Pat Toomey by 12 percentage points.

http://www.newsmax.com/headlines/obama_ ... 47481.html