Base Support for Obama is Fading

[Frodo]

Even the base of the Democratic Party is getting fed up with this wimp:

Poll: Obama fading with base voters

By TIM MAK | 9/7/11 12:09 PM EDT

President Barack Obama’s base is showing some of the lowest approval ratings for his policies since he was elected in 2008, says a new poll.

Among those who voted for Obama, 70 percent now support his handling of the economy, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll released Tuesday. That’s down from 79 percent in October 2010.

Looking only at those who are registered Democrats, only 60 percent approve of the president’s handling of the economy, a substantial drop from the 74 percent who backed him in March. Only 32 percent of Democrats currently believe that the country is headed in the right direction, the poll found.

Obama also performed relatively poorly among self-identified liberals - 69 percent approve of the job he is doing as president, which ties a record low from July 2011.

Another dramatic change is that only 47 percent percent of voters under 30 years of age approved of the president’s overall job performance, the first time this figure has dropped below 50 percent since his election. This group supported Obama by around two-to-one in 2008.


Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0911/62824.html#ixzz1XJIE3aDu

[Snowstalker Mk. II]

In other news, Buddy Roemer is unlikely to win the Republican nomination.

[Simfan34]

In other news, Buddy Roemer is unlikely to win the Republican nomination.

Uh... yeah.

[King]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

[Eraserhead]

I gave up on him quite a while ago.

[TheDeadFlagBlues]

I gave up on him quite a while ago.

[Politico]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

Tell that to Jimmy Carter.

[King]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

Tell that to Jimmy Carter.

Jimmy Carter,

You still won your 40% base.  You didn't win any swing voters.

Thanks,

King

[courts]

In other news, Buddy Roemer is unlikely to win the Republican nomination.

To our great detriment.

[Politico]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

Tell that to Jimmy Carter.

Jimmy Carter,

You still won your 40% base.  You didn't win any swing voters.

Thanks,

King

How did Mondale get 37,577,352 to Carter's 35,480,115? That's about two million base votes that Carter lost from people supporting Anderson or not voting at all, not to mention all of the "Reagan Democrats" that were lost too.

But I am not going to disagree with your overall sentiment. You're absolutely right that the vast majority of the base will still vote for their guy. However, it is not written in stone that all of Obama's base is going to show up no matter what to support him.

[krazen1211]

Doh. Obama is shellacking his own base as measured by the unemployment rates of blacks and teens/20 somethings.

[President von Cat]

I gave up on him quite a while ago.

No, he gave up on you quite a while ago.

[Mr. Morden]

Nitpicky comment of the day:

Voters who've stopped supporting Obama are by definition not his "base".

[King]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

Tell that to Jimmy Carter.

Jimmy Carter,

You still won your 40% base.  You didn't win any swing voters.

Thanks,

King

How did Mondale get 37,577,352 to Carter's 35,480,115? That's about two million base votes that Carter lost from people supporting Anderson or not voting at all, not to mention all of the "Reagan Democrats" that were lost too.

But I am not going to disagree with your overall sentiment. You're absolutely right that the vast majority of the base will still vote for their guy. However, it is not written in stone that all of Obama's base is going to show up no matter what to support him.

Ever hear of population growth?  6 million more people voted in 1984 compared to 1980. 40% of 6 million is 2.4 million votes.  Mondale received about 2.1 million more votes than Carter.  The Anderson support was all moderate Republican. 

The Democratic base is 40% and does not change.  The only candidate to not get his full base in the past 50 years was Barry Goldwater (and Lyndon Johnson simultaneously, oddly enough).

[greenforest32]

I gave up on him quite a while ago.

[DrScholl]

Too bad for Republicans, those people won't be voting for Perry. Disapproval doesn't equal votes for the opposition.

[redcommander]

Too bad for Republicans, those people won't be voting for Perry. Disapproval doesn't equal votes for the opposition.

That's what they said FDR.

[Small Business Owner of Any Repute]

An unhappy base will still vote for Obama, but they won't donate as prolifically as they did in 2008, nor will they man phones or go door to door. The grassroots was one of Obama's greatest assets last time around, and the corporate base he'll rely on in 2012 makes a piss-poor substitute.

[King]

Too bad for Republicans, those people won't be voting for Perry. Disapproval doesn't equal votes for the opposition.

That's what they said FDR.

Who said what how why?

[redcommander]

Too bad for Republicans, those people won't be voting for Perry. Disapproval doesn't equal votes for the opposition.

That's what they said FDR.

Who said what how why?

I'm using him as an example where a party's base collapses and votes for the opposite party. Republicans were basically on life support from 1932-1938.

[Politico]

An unhappy base will still vote for Obama, but they won't donate as prolifically as they did in 2008, nor will they man phones or go door to door. The grassroots was one of Obama's greatest assets last time around, and the corporate base he'll rely on in 2012 makes a piss-poor substitute.

Well put. I second this.

[J. J.]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

Tell that Jimmy Carter and George H W Bush. 

[John Dibble]

Too bad for Republicans, those people won't be voting for Perry. Disapproval doesn't equal votes for the opposition.

That's what they said FDR.

Who said what how why?

I'm using him as an example where a party's base collapses and votes for the opposite party. Republicans were basically on life support from 1932-1938.

I don't think it's an apt comparison - Perry is no FDR. He's the kind of guy that outright scares people in the other party, so unless it's revealed that Obama eats babies the day before the election it's not likely they'll vote for him.

[King]

Base support doesn't fade.  It just gets pissy for awhile.

Tell that Jimmy Carter and George H W Bush.  

Jimmy Carter did not lose his base.  




He performed strong and weak in the same exact states as he did in 1976, the only difference being his support dropped 10 points nationwide.  If you think that 10 points was lost base and not lost swing vote then you're too clueless.

GHWB had an extremely viable third party candidate to deal with.