This bit of news from Gallup isn’t exactly surprising, but it does remind us that absent dramatic stories like the OBL kill, Obama’s underwater or almost underwater on his approval rating – a lousy spot for an incumbent to be:
President Obama’s job approval rating averaged 46% for the week ending June 12, a significant decline from his weekly averages for most of May and nearly back to the level before Osama bin Laden’s death on May 1.Thus, it appears the sustained rally in support for the president after the death of the Sept. 11 terror mastermind is largely over. The drop in Obama’s approval rating coincides with an increase in Americans’ pessimism about the economy. Economic confidence also increased after bin Laden’s death but began to decline early this month, perhaps due to reports of anemic job growth and concerns about the slow pace of economic recovery.
Among partisan groups, independents’ approval rating of Obama dropped the most in the past week, from 47% to 42%, with a smaller decline among Democrats. Republicans’ approval of Obama spiked to 21% during the first week after bin Laden’s death from 10% in late April, before falling back to the 15% range, where it has held since.