Obama Foreign Policy Approval Takes a Hit Amid the Arab Autumn

The one issue where President Obama has continuously polled well is foreign policy, an issue that everyone, Democrats and Republicans alike, would have never expected. However, when you think about it, there should be no surprise there.

Obama spent the first three years of his presidency continuing or enhancing the policies of President Bush overseas. Then a bunch of Arab dictators were overthrown in the “Arab Spring.” And then, of course, Osama Bin Laden was finally found and eliminated.

Today things are a bit different. The “Arab Spring” has turned to an “Arab Autumn” where anti-Americanism has replaced pro-democracy on the streets of cities throughout the Middle East. Americans, including a high ranking diplomat, have been murdered. The Administration says the violence is over a low budget Youtube movie mocking Islam. Whether that is true is of no concern, because while hurt feelings over a film is no excuse to act like murderous animals, neither is any other possible cause.

The result of this foreign policy blunder is that Obama’s high flying foreign policy numbers are falling while he continues to apologize for the United States, a long time practice that is finally catching up with him.

One month ago, Obama’s foreign policy approval rating was 54 percent in the NBC/Wall Street Journal poll. Now, a week after the Arab Autumn began, that number has dropped to 49 percent.

While that does not seem incredibly significant, if we take partisans out of the sample, you start to see the real effects. Democrats, after all, will never disapprove of anything Obama does.

Independents now rate Obama’s foreign policy at 41 percent. Well below the coveted 50 percent mark, and certainly a huge drop in just one month.

Take that fact and remember that Mitt Romney leads President Obama by double digits with Independents in a few polls, and you begin to see the bigger picture. This could be hugely problematic for the President’s reelection effort.

Brian McGovern
About Brian McGovern 748 Articles
Brian McGovern wears many hats these days including Voorhees Township GOP Municipal Chairman, South Jersey attorney, and co-owner of the Republican campaign consulting firm Exit 3 Strategies, Inc.

1 Comment

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