Stan Geiger

Funky Poll Numbers

If there is one thing in this country of which there is plenty it would be poll numbers. I’ve seen quite a few reports of Obama’s overall approval rating in recent days, and I’m struck by the spread.

Several days ago, I read that Obama’s overall approval rating was 46 percent. I believe that number came from Rasmussen. According to the late night talk show hosts, a Zogby poll now puts the number at 45 percent.

Meanwhile, earlier in the week, I saw CBS and ABC poll numbers published on the same day. CBS said 53 percent approve of the way Obama is doing the job. ABC’s poll put the number at a whopping 56 percent.

In breakdowns of the issues of the day, Obama gets poor numbers across-the-board. He gets low approval ratings on Afghanistan, on the economy and on health care. In one poll, only 7 percent of those surveyed said they thought the big stimulus package had created any jobs at all. Nearly half said they didn’t expect the package to ever create any jobs. So how can a network, in that environment, say as much as 56 percent of the country thinks the president is doing a good job overall?

Could it be the networks are manipulating polls so as to protect their precious?

Yep, it could be.

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