Americans are overwhelmingly optimistic about Barack Obama's ability to fix the economy and be a good commander in chief generally, but they're more skeptical on some of his specific proposals, according to new polling out this week.
First, the good news for Obama: Sixty-two percent of Americans expect him to be a "good" or "great" president, and 70 percent expect the economy to improve over the next four years, according to a Quinnipiac University poll released today. Voters are also upbeat on his ability to deliver less tangible results: 56 percent said Obama will restore public trust in government, and 69 percent said his election will lead to improved race relations.
In instances where Obama and Democratic congressional leaders disagree on an issue, voters said they would trust the president-elect more, 59-24, according to a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll released Tuesday. That political capital could be an asset to Obama if moderate "Blue Dog" Democrats in the House and Senate try to dictate his agenda.
But data in the Quinnipiac poll shows that overall goodwill won't necessarily translate into automatic support for Obama's policy proposals. Obama called for the closing of the prison at Guantanamo Bay during the campaign, and it was reported on Tuesday that the president-elect is already looking into shuttering the facility. But a 44 percent plurality of voters said Guantanamo should remain open, compared with 29 percent who wanted it closed and 27 percent who weren't sure.
On Iraq, Obama's plans don't match voter sentiment right now, either. The Democrat campaigned for a withdrawal timetable and has promised to remove most troops from Iraq within 16 months. But a 56 percent majority of Americans, perhaps heartened by recent declines in violence, favored keeping troops in Iraq until the situation is stable, with no fixed timetable. Just under 2 in 5 disagreed.
And even on some Obama proposals with widespread support, Americans don't seem optimistic they'll be enacted. Fifty-four percent of voters believe the president-elect will not follow through on his oft-repeated campaign pledge to lower taxes for 95 percent of Americans.
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