Datapoints
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Criticism of Congress
12/05/2008
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The 110th Congress returned to Washington this week for its final, “lame-duck” session. According to a Gallup poll conducted in November, only 19 percent of Americans approve of the way Congress is handling its job, nearly identical to the 20 percent who did last November and barely up from an all-time low of 14 percent recorded in July 2008. Today, only 22 percent of Democrats, 17 percent of Republicans, and 17 percent of independents approve of the way Congress is handling it job. On Election Day, voters were similarly negative about Congress, although most of them returned their incumbent representative or senator. In the national exit poll, only 23 percent of Americans said they approved of the way Congress is handling its job.
Source: The Gallup Organization, November 2008.
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The Recession Next Door?
12/03/2008
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This week, the National Bureau of Economic Research confirmed what many Americans had already suspected: the economy is in a recession, and has been since December 2007. When asked by Gallup/USA Today in September, 61 percent of Americans said the U.S. economy was in a recession or a depression.
In a Quinnipiac University poll conducted in November, 95 percent of Americans described the state of the economy as “not so good” (37 percent) or “poor” (58 percent). But when asked about the state of their personal finances, Americans were more upbeat. A majority of Americans described the state of their personal finances as “excellent” (8 percent) or “good” (48 percent), compared to 43 percent who described it as “not so good” (28 percent) or “poor” (15 percent).
Source: Quinnipiac University, November 2008.
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What We’re Thankful For
12/01/2008
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What are Americans thankful for? When asked by Gallup in 2000 to describe the “two or three things” they were most thankful for, more than three-quarters said “family” (59 percent) or “children” (17 percent), compared to 54 percent who said their “own health” and 17 percent who said “freedom” or “living in a free country/the United States.”
Source: The Gallup Organization, November 2004; U.S. Census Bureau, November 2008.
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Pass the Turkey, Please
11/26/2008
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When Americans fill their plates on Thursday, they will likely include a hearty helping of turkey. According to Gallup, 49 percent of Americans describe turkey as their favorite Thanksgiving food or dish, followed by stuffing (14 percent), ham (5 percent), mashed potatoes (5 percent), and pumpkin pie (5 percent).
According to U.S. Census statistics, the typical American consumed 13.3 pounds of turkey in 2006, including a sizeable portion at Thanksgiving time.
Three places in the United States are named after America’s favorite fowl: Turkey, Texas (465 residents); Turkey Creek, Louisiana (363 residents); and Turkey, North Carolina (270 residents).
Source: The Gallup Organization, November 2004; U.S. Census Bureau, November 2008.
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Auto Assistance
11/24/2008
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Congress adjourned last week without approving a proposed $25 billion bailout for Detroit's “Big Three” automakers, with lawmakers calling for more precise information about how the money will be used. “Until we see the plan, we cannot show them the money,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
According to recent Gallup poll, Americans are divided—47 percent in favor and 49 percent opposed—over the idea of “the federal government giving major financial assistance to the big three U.S. automotive companies if they are close to going broke or declaring bankruptcy.” Democrats favor the proposal by 60 percent to 36 percent, while most Republicans (65 percent) and independents (53 percent) oppose it. When asked by USA Today/Gallup about priorities for the next president, only 20 percent of Americans said that “providing loans and other help” to automobile companies was “critical” or “very important,” compared to 60 percent who said that about enacting stricter financial regulations.
Source: The Gallup Organization, November 2008.
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Madame Secretary?
11/21/2008
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Will President-elect Obama appoint Senator Hillary Clinton as secretary of state? According to a new Gallup poll, a majority (57 percent) of Americans would like him to. A new Marist poll reports that 55 percent of registered voters in New York want Hillary to become secretary of state, compared to 31 percent who want her to stay in the Senate. Clinton has high job approval ratings among New Yorkers. In both the Marist and Quinnipiac polls, more than 60 percent said they approve of the job she is doing.
Source: The Marist Poll, November 2008.
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A Smooth Transition?
11/19/2008
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President Bush recently issued an executive order to smooth the transition process to a new administration. While it is unlikely that many Americans have heard about the order, they are optimistic about the Bush-Obama transition. According to a recent CNN/ORC poll, nearly six in ten Americans believe that the presidential transition from the Bush administration to the Obama administration will be “relatively easy and free from tension,” compared to 39 percent who believe it will be “relatively difficult with a lot of tension.”
In a different CNN/ORC poll released Monday, more than three-quarters of respondents say they are “very” (43 percent) or “somewhat” (34 percent) confident that President-elect Obama will make the right decisions in appointing people to his Cabinet.
Source: CNN/Opinion Research Corporation, November 2008.
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Immigration Interest
11/17/2008
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According to the Wall Street Journal, advocates of stricter immigration control lost ground on November 4, when nine Republican members of the Immigration Reform Caucus (which opposes a path to citizenship for the country's estimated 12 million illegal immigrants) lost their congressional seats. Even so, "the next administration's preoccupation with economic crisis will likely prevent immigration advocates from capitalizing" on these losses.
Recent Gallup data suggest that Americans want to reduce immigration (39 percent) or keep it at its present level (39 percent). Just 18 percent want it increased. When asked about illegal immigrants, most said these immigrants "mostly take the low-paying jobs that Americans don't want" (79 percent) but still "cost the taxpayers too much by using government services like public education and medical services" (63 percent).
In a CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll conducted in June, 52 percent of Americans favored "building a fence along 700 miles of the border with Mexico," similar to the 54 percent who said they favored doing so last year.
Source: CNN/Opinion Research Corporation, June 2008.
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Gun Control
11/14/2008
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According to a CNN/ORC poll conducted in June, Americans favor common-sense restrictions on guns. They strongly support preventing convicted felons or people with mental problems from owning guns (88 percent), and favor waiting periods for gun purchasers (86 percent) and registration with local government (79 percent). But they are split over limiting the number of guns a person may own and over concealed-carry policies. They strongly oppose banning gun ownership (87 percent).
Source: CNN/Opinion Research Corporation, June 2008.
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America's Veterans
11/11/2008
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Approximately 24 million Americans are veterans of the U.S. Armed Services. Veterans are more likely than non-veterans to be male, white, and older, partly because large numbers of them served in World War II, Korea, and Vietnam. On Election Day this year, 16 percent of all voters were veterans. They voted for their comrade-in-arms John McCain over Barack Obama by 54 percent to 45 percent, making them one of McCain’s strongest groups. In 2004, they voted for George W. Bush over John Kerry by 57 percent to 41 percent. Harris Interactive finds that Americans place more confidence in military leaders than they do in the leaders of any other institution, including the Supreme Court and Congress. Fifty-one percent of Americans say they have a “great deal of confidence” in military leaders, compared to 8 percent who say that about the leaders of Congress.
Source: National Election Poll exit poll consortium.