Poll: Obama gets high marks for first 100 days

Republican pollster Bill McInturff, who conducted this survey with Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart, says these numbers suggest “someone who is wearing well” with the public at this stage of his presidency. McInturff, in fact, even compares Obama’s early likeability to Ronald Reagan’s in the 1980s.

“How popular can this guy be?” Hart asks. “The answer is exceptionally popular.”

     As he enters his 100th day in office, President Barack Obama enjoys higher marks from the American public than his most recent predecessors did at similar points in their presidencies, according to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.

More than six in 10 approve of Obama’s job, nearly two-thirds view him favorably, and a majority believe he has gotten off to a solid start during his first three months on the job.

Perhaps most significantly, Americans so far find him to be likeable. More than 80 percent in the poll say they personally like Obama, even if they don’t agree with all of his policies. And respondents give him high scores on his personality, demeanor and leadership qualities.

Yet the poll also contains a few cautionary numbers for Obama and his young administration: a growing number believe the president is liberal; a majority thinks he’s trying to take on too many issues; and there are concerns about all the government spending.

“The wind is at his back,” Hart says. But looking ahead to the next 100 days, the Democratic pollster adds that Obama might “face some pretty stiff headwinds in his future.”

Despite these ups and down, the president remains quite popular. According to the poll, 61 percent approve of Obama’s job — that’s compared with George W. Bush’s 56 percent and Bill Clinton’s 52 percent at this same juncture in their presidencies.

Also, 64 percent view Obama favorably versus 23 percent who see him in a negative light — once again, higher than Bush’s and Clinton’s scores on this question.

In addition, 54 percent believe the president is off to a “great” or “good start;” 59 percent say he’s accomplished a “great deal” or a “fair amount;” and 64 percent feel more hopeful about the direction of the country with Obama in office.

What’s more, a whopping 81 percent say they like him personally (51 percent like him personally and approve of most of his policies, and another 30 percent like him personally but disapprove of his policies).

“How popular can this guy be?” Hart asks. “The answer is exceptionally popular.”

Indeed, as other recent national polls have shown, Obama’s early popularity has seemed to increase the number of Americans who believe the nation is headed in the right direction.

In the NBC/Journal poll, 43 percent say the country is on the right track, compared with an equal 43 percent who say it’s on the wrong track