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After 100 Days, Does Obama Beat Bush?

A look at approval ratings, community-by-community

By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff

Posted Apr 27, 2009 12:00 PM CDT
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(Newser) – After 100 days, President Obama is more divisive, more popular with moderates, and bigger with his base than George W. Bush was at this point—depending on where you look, the Christian Science Monitor finds in a look at 11 community types. Overall, Obama’s 63% Pew approval rating beats Bush’s—but unlike Obama, Dubya was rated at least 59% in all communities studied.

Obama scores below 50% in “heavily-Latino” communities, just 50% in “Military bastions,” and 51% in “Evangelical epicenters.” But the president is soaring at 70% in “Monied ‘burbs,” full of rich, educated people, and at 69% in “Boom towns,” which are wealthy, “growing and diversifying.” Both are politically important communities. And in the “Industrial metropolis”—“what might be thought of as his base,” blogger Dante Chinni notes—Obama scores 82% approval.

President George W. Bush walks with Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican Gardens at the end of their meeting at the Vatican Friday, June 13, 2001.
President George W. Bush walks with Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican Gardens at the end of their meeting at the Vatican Friday, June 13, 2001.   (AP Photo/Cristophe Simon, Pool)
In this Jan. 20, 2009 file photo, President Barack Obama and former President George W. Bush stand for the closing prayer after Obama was sworn in.
In this Jan. 20, 2009 file photo, President Barack Obama and former President George W. Bush stand for the closing prayer after Obama was sworn in.   (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
In this photo, taken April 16, 2009, President Barack Obama speaks in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus in Washington.
In this photo, taken April 16, 2009, President Barack Obama speaks in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on the White House campus in Washington.   (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 5 comments
AdaptAndOvercome
Apr 30, 2009 9:23 AM CDT
Obama has done for the American people in 100 days than Bush did in his entire tenure as President. Just look at the mess we are in. He came into office like a bull in a china cabinet and disrupted every aspect of our existance and left with a whimper.
Forderon
Apr 28, 2009 4:44 AM CDT
Obama's lead over Bush looks even better when you consider the context
woodyTX
Apr 27, 2009 7:33 AM CDT
It appears from the data that the GOP are losing their hold on the upper middle class who have finally realized what the Bush era really did (didn't) for America. They are also losing the military who are tired of being used as ideological pawns as opposed to defenders of American freedom and safety. Obama's 70% approval rating in these trying times speaks volumes.

The Pew data
Pew Research Center

Number-crunching Obama's first 100
Reuters

Obama's approval in the Middle East
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Bush administration • Barack Obama • approval ratings • George W. Bush • Obama administration • community • President Obama • 100 days

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