Lots of interesting stuff over at Rasmussen today. In order of topicality:
1) 58% of voters say that Barack Obama threw Jeremiah Wright under the bus out of political convenience. Only 30% of likely voters say he did so because he was truly outraged.
Although I am typically loath to offer I-told-you-so's, I just can't resist taking a swing at this hanging curve of an opportunity. I said after his Tuesday presser that Obama hit the wrong tone. He was diffident and measured when he needed to be feisty and angry. If he was going to say he was outraged, he had to show a little outrage. Now, it may be the case that Obama eschewed outrage because he's a preternaturally cool individual and just doesn't have outrage in him. Such a quality would be a decided mixed blessing in a president. After the next 9/11, I would like a president to actually be capable of outrage, although I wouldn't want him to be blinded by it.
That said, the most likely scenario is that Tuesday's presser was a farce and Obama just couldn't commit to doing what had to be done. After 20 years of attending Wright's church, Obama's probably long since lost any ability he might have once had to be outraged by Wright's antics.
Anyway, the bottom line is that this poll suggests that the public viewed Obama as a typical self-interested politician this week. If that continues, his campaign narrative will fall apart.
2) In the Daily Presidential Tracking Poll, John McCain has stretched his lead over Obama to six points. In the Democratic tussle, the Lioness of Tuzla holds a two point lead over Obama for the second consecutive day. The most amazing number on the Daily Tracking Poll page is that 48% of Democrats "believe it's somewhat or very likely that Obama shares some of Wright's views." Maybe Hillary's voters won't be coming home to Obama in the Fall after all. Or maybe things are just at a fever pitch right now and when things settle, Obama will reclaim the entire Democratic base. Meanwhile, Republicans can sit back and enjoy the spectacle of Democratic super-delegates deciding whether or not to risk what should be a slam-dunk of an election cycle on "maybe."
3) On Tuesday, a plurality of respondents said dreadlocked caterwauler Jason Castro should have been the next American Idol contender sent home. Easily the least talented of the remaining contestants, Castro himself acknowledged this week in an interview with Entertainment Weekly that he's the worst singer of the group by a mile. The EW profile also suggested that Castro is lazy and not working nearly as diligently as his competitors.
Nevertheless, American Idol viewers made the right decision in sending gorgeous but hyper-saccharine and (super-boring) blonde Brooke White home on Wednesday. White had this irritating habit of angrily dismissing any criticism that she received from the judges. It would seem to me that if you were 24 (as White is) and wanted a career in the music business and an accomplished star-maker like Simon Cowell was giving you advice, you'd be wise to pay rapt attention even if you didn't particularly care for his manner. I like to think that this unseemly arrogance caused White to precede Castro out the door.
4) Lastly, President Bush's approval ratings have fallen to an all time low in the Rasmussen poll (and just about every other poll for that matter). I can't claim any special insight into the president or his insiders; I've never met any of the powers that be, so my psychoanalyzing the administration may not be a particularly fruitful exercise. Nevertheless, I'm going to do so anyway.
It seems to me that the president has become altogether too comfortable with this notion that he's a latter day Harry S. Truman who will return home reviled as a president but will eventually become revered by history. It might well play out that way, and since I'm one of the hearty 30% or so who still approves of President Bush, I hope the latter part of the equation works out for him. But his present-day unpopularity will be a serious drag on Republican efforts this fall. Thus, it would be a swell thing if the administration resumed its efforts to communicate with the American people. Over the last few days, it's begun to look like the economy will avoid a recession. That's a good thing, and yet 81% of the country already thinks we're in a recession. The president is still the president - he has the largest bully pulpit of anyone in the world. He ought to resume using it.
