A national poll released by Quinnipiac University on Thursday finds that Americans are feeling better about the economy, but that shift in thinking is doing little to improve President Barack Obamas chances for a second term in November.
"Voters have begun to change their minds about the economy, said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute on Thursday. They are humming, not yet singing, 'Happy Days Are Here Again,' but there seems to be a sense that things are getting a bit better. But President Barack Obama is not singing along as there is little uptick in his job approval numbers and the share of voters who think he deserves a second term in the Oval Office.
The poll of registered voters shows that a majority -- 54 percent -- of those surveyed believe the economy is starting to turn around, though a sizable minority -- 43 percent -- do not think it is. This is a dramatic shift from a Quinnipiac poll released in September, which found that only 28 percent of those surveyed thought the economy was bouncing back and 68 percent thought it remained in bad shape.
While the poll finds that Americans feel better about the economy, 66 percent of them continue to believe they are in a recession while 30 percent do not. This is down from an October poll from Quinnipiac when 77 percent of those surveyed thought the nation was in a recession.
The poll finds that while more Americans may think the economy is recovering, they remain wary of Obama. Democrat Obama is upside down in the new poll with 49 percent disapproving of his performance as president while 45 percent approve of it. Fifty percent think Obama does not deserve a second term, while 45 percent think he should have four more years in the White House.
While Obamas job performance numbers went up slightly compared to a Quinnipiac poll from late November -- which had him at 44 percent favorable and 50 percent unfavorable -- the number of Americans who think he does not deserve a second term also grew. In the November poll, 48 percent thought he should be denied a second term while 45 percent thought he'd earned re-election.
The poll finds that voters remain opposed to many of Obamas signature policies. Fifty percent of those surveyed -- and 51 percent of independent voters -- want to see the U.S. Supreme Court strike down the federal health-care law that Obama signed, while only 39 percent want to see it upheld. Fifty-four percent say they back Obamas compromise resulting from his administrations earlier mandate onreligious-affiliated institutions to include birth-control coverage for their employees. Sixty percent of those surveyed do not want to see federal funds to Planned Parenthood cut.
While Obama stands in the way of the Keystone XL Pipeline, 64 percent of Americans want to see it established. Only 23 percent oppose it.
Voters overwhelmingly back Arizonas immigration law -- 64 percent support it, while 32 percent oppose it. When asked about their thoughts on the Supreme Court looking at the Arizona law, 61 percent say they hope the law is upheld, while 31 percent want to see it struck down.
The poll of 2,605 registered voters was taken Feb. 14-20 and had a margin of error of +/- 1.9 percent.
Another poll released this week also shows Americans feeling more optimistic about where the country is headed.
A poll from Rasmussen Reports unveiled on Wednesday finds that less than a third -- 31 percent -- of likely voters in November believe the nation is headed on the right track. A solid majority -- 61 percent -- of those surveyed think the nation is headed in the wrong direction.
The percentage of Americans thinking the county was on the right path in Rasmussen polls from the latter half of 2011 were in the teens, ranging between 14 percent to 19 percent.
The poll of 3,500 likely voters was taken from Feb. 13-19 and had a margin of error of +/- 2 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
