Everything Old Is New Again

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Mitch Berg

I had a brief burst of nostalgia from my teens earlier this week.

I was filling in for Tom Taylor on the night shift at KEYJ on a lonely, chilly Sunday night when the AP said that Iranian “students” had sacked the US embassy. Jimmy Carter was president – and, I figured, he would be for four more years “I mean”, thought the young Democrat-leaning Mitch mind, “who do the GOP have? Baker? Reagan? Huh?”

The Iranian “students” are back at it – and so is the Democrat party’s out-of-his-depth President (emphasis added):

President Obama’s slow ride down Gallup’s daily presidential job approval index has finally passed below Jimmy Carter, earning Obama the worst job approval rating of any president at this stage of his term in modern political history.

Since March, Obama’s job approval rating has hovered above Carter’s, considered among the 20th century’s worst presidents, but today Obama’s punctured Carter’s dismal job approval line. On their comparison chart, Gallup put Obama’s job approval rating at 43 percent compared to Carter’s 51 percent.

As the story notes, Carter was well below Obama’s current numbers; Americans actually rallied around the president after the crisis erupted; Carter worked long and hard to squander that national mandate.

How does this compare with other presidents’ first terms?

According to Gallup, here are the job approval numbers for other presidents at this stage of their terms, a year before the re-election campaign:

— Harry S. Truman: 54 percent.

— Dwight Eisenhower: 78 percent.

— Lyndon B. Johnson: 44 percent.

— Richard M. Nixon: 50 percent.

— Ronald Reagan: 54 percent.

— George H.W. Bush: 52 percent.

— Bill Clinton: 51 percent.

— George W. Bush: 55 percent.

What’s more, Gallup finds that Obama’s overall job approval rating so far has averaged 49 percent. Only three former presidents have had a worse average rating at this stage: Carter, Ford, and Harry S. Truman. Only Truman won re-election in an anti-Congress campaign that Obama’s team is using as a model.

Just saying.

25 thoughts on “Everything Old Is New Again”

Seflores on November 30, 2011 at 1:32 pm said:

I’m calling shenanigans on this post MBerg.

“… and so is the Democrat party’s out-of-his-depth President (emphasis added)”

To write that Obama is ‘out-of-his-depth’ is to presume that Obama has any depth. This is a spurious presumption.

It should go without saying but I’ll save the resident SWPL Liberal commenter the labor of having to type it out: Nice, how professional.
Earsall Mackbee on November 30, 2011 at 2:30 pm said:

I’m not surprised that the prez’s approval ratings are so high given the fawning of the Lamestream Media….oh wait, damn it!!! Round peg, square hole.
swiftee on November 30, 2011 at 5:18 pm said:

Much as I’ll be glad to see Bammy go, I don’t see anything exciting about his replacement choices.

Herman is cooked, I’m not going to vote for Romney and Newt’s got some nasty skid marks on him too.

I may have to punt this election, or maybe write in NoseMarie.
Terry on November 30, 2011 at 5:41 pm said:

JOHn Hood at NRO’s Corner thinks we are at the beginning of a hot war with Iran:

I guess U.S. and Western politicians has been treading carefully around the reality of the situation, perhaps for good reason, but does the political class really think the rest of us don’t know what’s happening in Iran right now? The Israelis or agents acting in their behalf or interests are subjecting the Iranian nuclear program to attack. First they hit a base outside of Tehran two weeks ago, taking out the head of Iran’s missile defense force along with a couple dozen other military personnel and some key real estate. Then on Monday they hit a facility near Isfahan that houses one of the country’s uranium-enrichment sites.

Presumably, American leaders and other Western officials know what is going on, even if they haven’t been actively supporting the strikes on Iran. In response, the Iranian government orchestrated an assault on the British embassy — there being no comparable Israeli or American target handy — and will attempt terrorist or military reprisals as soon as they can.

In other words, the question of whether the military option should be used against Iran’s nuclear program is now moot. It is being used. Now what?

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/284512/question-military-action-moot-john-hood
Mitch Berg on November 30, 2011 at 6:55 pm said:

Ears,

Round peg, square hole.

Well, more like “the media may be shilling for The One, but even people who were dumb enough to vote Obama three years ago know what “I’m still out of work” means”.

Close.

No, not really.
Leslie Hittner on December 1, 2011 at 5:07 am said:

Add another item into the fray and it becomes obvious that we are at a real political cusp in our country: The Congressional approval rating is even lower! A comment on the Winona Daily News website included this:

Their [Congress’] approval ratings are 1/2 BPs during the oil spill. Hence, this joke:
A driver was stuck in a traffic jam on the beltway around Washington,DC Nothing was moving. Suddenly, a man knocks on the window. The driver rolls down the window and asks”What’s going on?””Terrorist s have kidnapped Congress, the man replied, and they are asking for a $100 million dollar ransom Otherwise, they are going to douse them all in gasoline and set them on fire. We are going from car to car, collecting donations.””How much is everyone giving, on average?” the driver asks The man replies, “Roughly a gallon.”

In all seriousness – where do we go from here? Swiftee and Terry both make valid points…and they are scary.
justplainangry on December 1, 2011 at 8:47 am said:

Somebody call the paramedics! Leslie agreed with swiftee! There may be hope after all. I thought all was lost and libs are genetically indisposed to critical thinking. And yet, here is Leslie. I hope he is not the exception that proves the rule.
Earsall Mackbee on December 1, 2011 at 8:55 am said:

Mitch, your premise rests on the HUGE assumption that those angry voters who voted for Obama 3 years ago now see a better choice on the other side. Remember the old saw …”Often the correct answer is the simplest one?”…maybe the drop in approval ratings is just further proof this idea of the widespeard Lamestream Media is, and always has been, nothing more than a wingnut conspiracy.
Loren on December 1, 2011 at 9:12 am said:

Congressional approval ratings are without meaning. Nearly everyone polled dislikes something Congress has done, or hasn’t gotten done. But when it comes to their own representative, most will vote to re-elect the representative of their district.
Mitch Berg on December 1, 2011 at 9:43 am said:

Ears,

Mitch, your premise rests on the HUGE assumption that those angry voters who voted for Obama 3 years ago now see a better choice on the other side.

No, it doesn’t. My premise is that Obama is a crap president, and most of the nation knows it.

Remember the old saw …”Often the correct answer is the simplest one?”…maybe the drop in approval ratings is just further proof this idea of the widespeard Lamestream Media is, and always has been, nothing more than a wingnut conspiracy

Any “answer” can be “simple” if it ignores all evidence and context!
Earsall Mackbee on December 1, 2011 at 10:03 am said:

With your ever-changing arguments, I now understand where the name of this blog comes from…..Although I prefer the moniker “Whack-a-Mole” …when one thesis gets shot down, another just pops up.
K-Rod on December 1, 2011 at 10:13 am said:

Hey Swiftee, do you really think MN electoral votes won’t go to Obama regardless GOP candidate?
Mitch Berg on December 1, 2011 at 10:36 am said:

Ears,

With your ever-changing arguments,

For starters, I didn’t make an argument. I compared poll numbers, and cautioned Republicans against irrational exuberance. The only “argument” was your insertion of some “lamestream media” meme – which may well be arguable, but had nothing to do with anything I wrote.

I now understand where the name of this blog comes from…

…in, apparently, the same sense that you “understood” what I was writing in the first place.
Kermit on December 1, 2011 at 12:16 pm said:

I’m pulling for None of the Above. If we shut down Congress and the Executive for four years and let everything coast on autopilot, the economy might just recover, and then we could go back to arguing whether Democrats suck more than Republicans. And we might have a few bucks in our pocket.
swiftee on December 1, 2011 at 12:33 pm said:

Not only do I believe Bammy’ll get ’em K-Rod, it wouldn’t surprise me to know that our Soros of State has already mailed ’em in…or maybe they are in his car trunk for safekeeping…
Troy on December 1, 2011 at 12:38 pm said:

“Although I prefer the moniker “Whack-a-Mole””

I hereby dub thee Earsall “Wacky Mole” Mackbee.

Happy now?
Kermit on December 1, 2011 at 1:18 pm said:

Now Swiftee, accusations of voter fraud in Minnesota must be rigorously FACT CHECKED, preferably by the Star Tribune. Closely monitored by Alliance for a BM.
bosshoss429 on December 1, 2011 at 1:19 pm said:

Leslie; I hadn’t heard that one. It’s excellent!
Earsall Mackbee on December 1, 2011 at 2:06 pm said:

Here’s today’s lesson for the two of you shooting in the dark:

Mitch, ya went from Poll Numbers to the Unemployed hate Obama to Obama’s a Crap President. I know it’s all hard to follow, but those are Arguments, pal.
Really Troy? Let me help you out. ….”Wit: the keen perception and cleverly apt expression of those connections between ideas that awaken amusement and pleasure.” Read it enough and you may be able to actually develop some.
Mitch Berg on December 1, 2011 at 2:33 pm said:

Ears,

Mitch, ya went from Poll Numbers to the Unemployed hate Obama to Obama’s a Crap President. I know it’s all hard to follow, but those are Arguments, pal.

OK, call them arguments. Then argue them. What did you have in response? Besides some ofay and misplaced insults, you had…er, “Oh, yeah, the media is SO conservative nyuk nyuk”.

You want a discussion, then discuss. If you want to toss around smack talk and grossly-misguided condescension, go for it, but to be honest, you’re not very good at it.
Loren on December 1, 2011 at 2:54 pm said:

Earsall “Wacky Mole” Mackbee, you still haven’t addressed why you hold Mitch to a higher standard than you hold yourself.
Kermit on December 1, 2011 at 3:22 pm said:

I’m just waiting for someone to argue that Obama is NOT a crap president. I really am. Breathlessly.
K-Rod on December 1, 2011 at 3:58 pm said:

I’m just waiting for a liberal to seriously criticize Obama.
Leslie Hittner on December 1, 2011 at 5:23 pm said:

justplainangry, I don’t consider myself a liberal, so don’t treat me like the canary in the mine. I like to sit in the median and listen to the far left and the far right make a lot of noise on the lane violation rumble strips. And lately, I have had to wear earplugs…in both ears!
Troy on December 1, 2011 at 5:44 pm said:

Thank you for your recommended method of “reading a short definition of the word ‘wit’ repeatedly” to develop wit, Earsall Mackbee. The insight this provides into the origins of your own “wit” is priceless.