More petals drop from Obama’s rose

In late April I wrote a column titled, “What’s in a poll?” I made the case that Barack Obama’s popularity wasn’t as high as some media outlets claimed. Furthermore, I pointed out that his approval ratings had steadily declined since Inauguration Day. It’s a trend showing no signs of stopping.

Rasmussen Reports indicates that 40-percent of Americans now strongly disapprove of the President’s job performance while 32-percent strongly approve, leaving him an approval index of -8. This indicates a steady decline since my April column. Just 49-percent of Americans somewhat approve of Obama’s job performance, the first time such numbers have slipped below 50-percent. And an equal percentage of Americans somewhat disapprove.

Those numbers indicate a divisive governing direction from someone once hailed as capable of bringing the country together.

Seventy-six percent of voters now see Obama as politically liberal and 48-percent view him as very liberal. Both numbers have increased significantly since Election Day. Theories abound as to why America didn’t recognize Obama’s collectivist tendencies last year. But they’re recognizing them now, and the news only gets worse for the 44th President.

Three-fourths of Americans believe that government spending will continue to rise under Obama while just 12-percent expect a tax cut. This means most people think the President is lying when he regurgitates his claim that taxes won’t increase for 95-percent of all Americans. Compounding the bad news for the administration, a wide margin of likely voters think tax cuts, not spending hikes, will spur the economy. Obama’s snake oil isn’t selling like before.

Speaking of the economy, Americans rate our economic condition as the nation’s main problem. Alright, so you knew that without the aid of polling data. But only 29-percent trust Obama to make appropriate decisions concerning the nation’s future economic growth. Small wonder consumer confidence is eroding.

On the trust meter, less than 40-percent see Obama as more ethical than other politicians and just 32-percent see him wearing the magical mantel of bipartisanship. Perhaps more disturbing for Obama is the overall mood of the country.

Six in ten likely voters say the nation is on the wrong track. That number is actually slightly better than recent weeks, but still represents a steady decline in public confidence since the week ending May 10. It’s worse news for the Obama administration than it appears on the surface.

Obama didn’t receive 61-percent of the vote in the last election. Some of the people who voted for him apparently don’t think he is providing the hope and change he promised. In fact, it would appear that people are now associating him with more of the big government, free spending politics that have soured our economy, circumvented our Constitution and compromised our liberty.

However, Republicans shouldn’t see these numbers as cause for jubilation. A majority of Americans still blame Bush for our economic state. And despite the public’s growing skepticism of the Democrat’s socialized medicine and cap and trade scams, Republicans have garnered only a slight lead in the generic congressional ballot.

Maybe that last tidbit of information is our ray of sunshine. A solid majority of Americans trust their own economic instincts above government meddling. That’s good news. People exchanging voluntarily in the free market make economies grow, not Washington politicians and bureaucrats regardless of their party affiliation.

Now, will America act on its disgust with the two major parties, which differ mainly in the degree of tyranny and socialism they are wiling to impose on us? Or will we continue to allow congressional charlatans to steal our liberty and compromise our future?

The petals are falling from Obama’s rose, revealing the sharp thorns that were beneath the bloom from the beginning, while freedom’s fruit is ripening. Let’s pick the fruit and leave the fading flower to wither on its thorny stem.