A tiny bit of good news for Obama fans from Gallup:
Americans' approval of President Barack Obama is up six points after the death of Osama bin Laden in a U.S. raid on the al Qaeda leader's Pakistan compound. Obama averaged 46% approval in Gallup Daily tracking in the three days leading up to the military operation and has averaged 52% across the three days since.
And the good news for the president ends...there:
The increase in Obama's approval rating in recent days has come exclusively among Republicans and independents, with a 12-point increase among Republicans and a 9-point rise among independents. Democrats' approval rating of Obama has not changed over this time period.
Killing Osama bin Ladan means nothing to Democrats, I suppose. And how many of those appreciative Republicans will be voting for him in 2010, I wonder? My guess: Zero.
Jen Rubin over at Right Turn has some interesting historical comparisons:
...Obama’s bounce falls short of other major events. “The largest rally Gallup has ever measured was a 35-point increase for George W. Bush after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Other large rally effects include an 18-point increase for George H.W. Bush at the beginning of the 1991 Persian Gulf War; a 16-point jump for Richard Nixon after the Vietnam War peace accords were signed; and 14-point increases for George H.W. Bush after the U.S. sent troops to Kuwait following Iraq’s invasion of that country and for Lyndon Johnson after he announced he was halting bombing in North Vietnam."
So when is that feel-good euphoria going to end? This weekend, when Americans fill up their tanks with gas and find themselves paying twice as much as they did last year, and fill their carts up with groceries in anticipation of Mother's Day BBQ's, and find themselves paying twice as much as they did last year.
And when they return to work on Monday, with lighter pockets and talk of being "taxed by the mile" to cover budget deficits, expect their surliness to return, in spades. And expect it to be directed where it has for the last 18+ months - Washington, DC.
Enjoy your high, Mr. President. I'm sure it feels great. But, as someone like yourself - who has dabbled in drugs - should know, the crash is inevitable, unpleasant, and hard.
And usually leaves you in a worse position than when you started...