Archives » Friday, August 07, 2009
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Daniel Stone
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Aug 7, 2009 02:38 PM
President Obama has been learning lately that politics is a zero-sum game. When someone wins, someone else always loses. For a while, it was Obama doing the winning, who's 53-46 percent victory in November came at the expense, of course, of John McCain and GOP voters. Lately, though, Obama's been slipping. His approval rating now sits at 56 percent, down from a high of 69 back in January, according to Gallup. But here's the question: if Obama's losing, who's winning? Certainly not members of his administration, who have also taken minor hits. Vice President Joe Biden started at a 52 percent rating earlier this year but has since lost about five percentage points, says a CNN poll. Same with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (and same poll), who dropped from 66 percent several months ago to 61. Not even health policy purveyor Sen. Ted Kennedy, who's taken leave from the senate to fight a malignant brain tumor, has escaped without losing a few points of support.
It's fair to say that a sour economy and contentious debates on climate policy and health care haven't portrayed any leading pol as completely benevolent. Neither GOP elder Newt Gingrich (from 36 to 34, says a collection of polls) or media king Rush Limbaugh, who fell three points this year to 37 percent, have been spared. But has anyone been able to cash in on Obama's lost footing?
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