2009-04-27/US voters optimistic as Obama reaches 100-day mark
By Michael de Laine, The Copenhagen Voice, 27 April 2009
Barack Obama has had a tremendous start to his presidency in the United States, according to Annegrethe Rasmussen, the Washington correspondent of the Danish daily newspaper Information, the weekly newsmagazine Mandag Morgen and the TV current affairs programme DR2Udland.
Talking to a conference arranged by the Danish Chamber of Commerce and the centre-left thinktank Cevea on Barack Obama’s first 100 days in office, Rasmussen said commentators in the US media with few exceptions, such as the channels run by Fox Media, were unanimous in that view.
US voters seem to agree. Citing a new opinion poll, published on 27 April by ABC News and the Washington Post, Rasmussen noted that 69% of the voters polled believe Obama has been doing a good job during his first 100 days.
This is not only the best job approval rating at this point in 20 years, but it is also the broadest personal popularity since Ronald Reagan. In addition, half of Americans now say the country is headed in the right direction. 55% express optimism about the economy in the year ahead, a majority for the first time since late 2006.
The voters are not just optimistic about the direction the economy is taking, the pollsters said, they are also enthusiastic about the president. Obama gets particularly high grades for his work on international affairs, and he’s well-rated on issues as disparate as terrorism, global warming and taxes (the recent anti-tax “tea parties” protests notwithstanding).
And on the economy, Carsten Valgreen of Benderly Economics said the US is ready for a new boom, adding that it can come soon enough for Barack Obama to gain from it at the next presidential election in November 2012.
The Copenhagen Voice interviewed Rasmussen, Valgreen and Jeppe Kofod, the foreign and security policy spokesman for the Social Democrats, about Obama’s first 100 days and prospects for the future.
And we also have the comments – in Danish – of Kofod and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Niels Helveg Petersen, the Social Liberals, during a panel debate.
For the Annegrethe Rasmussen interview go to: http://cphvoice.ning.com/video/barack-obama-first-100-days-2.
For the Carsten Valgreen interview go to: http://cphvoice.ning.com/video/barack-obama-first-100-days.
For the Jeppe Kofod interview go to: http://cphvoice.ning.com/video/barack-obama-first-100-days-1.
For the Danish-language panel debate go to:
For the ABC News/Washington Post poll results go to: http://abcnews.go.com/images/PollingUnit/1089a1100Days.pdf.