Perhaps no measure better captures the public’s sentiment toward the president than job approval. It dates back to the earliest days of public opinion polling, when George Gallup asked about Franklin D. Roosevelt starting in the 1930s:
“Do you approve or disapprove of the way ____ is handling his job as president?”
Our poll last month showed that 47% of Americans approved of Barack Obama’s job performance – up 5 points from his 42% rating in December. Digging deeper into job approval ratings reveals additional insights about the public’s views of its leaders. We looked at Pew Research Center data going back to Bill Clinton, and Gallup data going back to Dwight Eisenhower. These ratings reflect, for example, how views of presidents have become more politically polarized, as well as how key events in U.S. history have helped shape positive and negative views of our commanders in chief.
via Presidential job approval ratings from Ike to Obama | Pew Research Center.
