Research Briefing

Americans Are Quite Aware That Obama Prefers To Defer To Others, Rather Than Take Point

AMERICANS HAVE NOTICED THAT WHEN IT COMES TO LEADERSHIP, OBAMA HAS STAYED ON THE SIDELINES

“Americans Have Grown Increasingly Less Likely To View President Obama As A Strong And Decisive Leader Since He Took Office.” (Jeffrey M. Jones, “Americans Less Likely To View Obama As A Strong Leader,” Gallup, 3/30/11)

47 Percent Of Americans Think Obama Is Not A Strong Leader. (Jeffrey M. Jones, “Americans Less Likely To View Obama As A Strong Leader,” Gallup, 3/30/11)

60 Percent Of Americans Think Obama Does Not Have A Clear Plan For Solving The Country’s Problems. (Jeffrey M. Jones, “Americans Less Likely To View Obama As A Strong Leader,” Gallup, 3/30/11)

A Full 50 Percent Of Americans Do Not Think Obama Deserves To Be Re-Elected. (Quinnipiac, 2069 RV, MoE 2.2%, 3/22-28)

• Only 36 Percent Of Americans Would Vote For Obama To Have A Second Term.  (Quinnipiac, 2069 RV, MoE 2.2%, 3/22-28)
• 48 Percent Of Americans Disapprove Of Obama. (Quinnipiac, 2069 RV, MoE 2.2%, 3/22-28)

Obama Chooses Politically Safe Positions Rather Than Leading 

Obama's Presidency Has Been Marked By A Series Of Politically Calculated Dodges On Tough Issues. "He didn't want to get mired in legislative details during the health-care debate for fear of repeating the Clinton administration's prescriptive, take-ours-or-leave-it approach. He doesn't want to go first on proposing entitlement reform because history teaches that this is not the best route to a deal. He didn't want to say anything too tough about Libya for fear of endangering Americans trapped there. He didn't want to weigh in on the labor battle in Wisconsin because, well, it's a swing state." (Ruth Marcus, Op-Ed, "Obama's 'Where's Waldo?' Presidency," The Washington Post, 3/2/11)

•  "Yet The Dots Connect To Form An Unsettling Portrait Of A 'Where's Waldo?' Presidency: You Frequently Have To Squint To Find The White House Amid The Larger Landscape." (Ruth Marcus, Op-Ed, "Obama's 'Where's Waldo?' Presidency," The Washington Post, 3/2/11)

The President’s Budget Reflects “Mr. Obama’s Characteristic Caution” And The White House’s Deference To Political Calculations Over Policy Solutions. "With the budget he is to unveil Monday, President Obama has not opted for the bold, comprehensive approach to reining in the fast-growing federal debt that his own fiscal commission has said is needed, now. That decision partly reflects Mr. Obama's characteristic caution, but also a White House calculation: that 'now' is too soon for the nation's political system."  (Jackie Calmes, "A Cautious Approach Seeking Bipartisan Appeal," The New York Times, 2/13/11)

Obama Is "Keeping A Low Profile" On The Important Political Debates On Spending Cuts And Labor Disputes. "On hot issues that Democrats and Republicans have found cause to fret about -- from spending reductions to state labor disputes -- President Barack Obama is keeping a low profile." (Jim Kuhnhenn, "On High-Profile Issues, Obama Keeps Low Profile," The Associated Press, 3/11/11)

Even Democrats Are Displaying An "Open Irritation" With Obama's Inability To Lead. "The open irritation with the White House comes just as Reid announced support for the Republican-led bill which passed in the House Tuesday and funds the government for another two weeks, while slashing $4 billion." (Manu Raju, "Democrats: Barack Obama Must Lead On Budget," Politico, 3/1/11)

• "Democratic Senators Are Frustrated With The Low-Profile President Barack Obama Has Kept During The Rancorous Spending Debate Dominating Capitol Hill, Urging Him Tuesday To Take An Assertive Role ..." (Manu Raju, "Democrats: Barack Obama Must Lead On Budget," Politico, 3/1/11)

AND THEY’VE NOTICED THAT OBAMA’S BUDGET “KICKS THE HARD CHOICES FURTHER DOWN THE ROAD”

64 Percent Of Americans Disapprove Of Obama’s Handling Of The Budget Deficit. (Quinnipiac, 2069 RV, MoE 2.2%, 3/22-28)

The Washington Post: “President Obama’s Budget Kicks The Hard Choices Further Down The Road.” (Editorial, “President Obama’s Budget Kicks The Hard Choices Further Down The Road,” The Washington Post, 2/15/11)

• Given The Chance To Show Leadership With His Budget, Obama "Chose Instead To Duck" Behind "The Sort Of Budgetary Gimmicks He Once Derided." "Having been given the chance, the cover and the push by the fiscal commission he created to take bold steps to raise revenue and curb entitlement spending, President Obama, in his fiscal 2012 budget proposal, chose instead to duck. To duck, and to mask some of the ducking with the sort of budgetary gimmicks he once derided."  (Editorial, "President Obama's Budget Kicks The Hard Choices Further Down The Road," The Washington Post, 2/15/11)

Obama’s Budget Ignores Our Looming Debt Crisis And Leaves Entitlement Programs On A Path To Bankruptcy 

USA Today: “It's Becoming Hard Not To Conclude That Obama Doesn't Much Care About The Debt Threat Or Has Decided To Wait Until After The 2012 Elections. Either Would Be A Shame, And Economically Risky.” (Editorial, “Our View: Obama’s Budget Ducks Tough Choices, USA Today, 2/14/11) 

The Congressional Budget Office Projects That Obama’s Budget Will Run $9.5 Trillion In Deficits Through 2021. “A new assessment of President Barack Obama's budget released Friday says the White House underestimates future budget deficits by more than $2 trillion over the upcoming decade. The estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office says that if Obama's February budget submission is enacted into law it would produce deficits totaling $9.5 trillion over 10 years — an average of almost $1 trillion a year.” (“CBO: Obama Understates Deficits By $2.3 Trillion,” The Associated Press, 3/18/11)

The President’s Budget “Would Do Little To Improve The Immediate Budget Outlook.” “Obama's deficit-reduction strategies would do little to improve the immediate budget outlook. Obama projects that the deficit will hit a record $1.6 trillion this year - which, at nearly 11 percent of the economy, would be the largest since World War II.” (Lori Montgomery, "Obama To Offer $3.7 Trillion Budget Blueprint; Deficit To Hit $1.6 Trillion This Year," The Washington Post, 2/14/11)

• "Obama's Budget Makes Clear That He Will Not Take The Lead In That Debate: It Contains No Specific Recommendations For Tax Or Entitlement Reform." (Lori Montgomery, "Obama To Offer $3.7 Trillion Budget Blueprint; Deficit To Hit $1.6 Trillion This Year," The Washington Post, 2/14/11)