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CBS News/New York Times National Poll
Americans Critical of Campaign Finance System
May 28-31, 2015
Q1. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President? TOTAL RESPONDENTS TotalRepDemIndApr15d % % % % % Approve4216753545 Disapprove4880185044 Don't know/No answer10 3 71511 Q2. Do you feel things in this country are generally going in the right direction or do you feel things have pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track? Right direction33 9573031 Wrong track6388356763 Don't know/No answer 5 2 8 3 6 Q3. What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today? Economy & Jobs1719181620 Health care/health insurance 6 8 4 6 2 Immigration/illegal immigrants 5 6 2 6 3 Miscellaneous government issues 5 5 5 5 4 Miscellaneous social issues 4 1 6 3 7 Poverty/homelessness 4 1 7 4 2 Moral values/family values 4 6 1 5 2 Budget/national debt/deficit/surplus 4 3 1 6 1 Education 3 1 3 4 2 Income gap 3 1 5 3 4 Miscellaneous economic issues 3 2 3 3 2 Racism/race relations 2 * 3 2 5 Welfare 2 3 2 * 1 War/peace (general) 2 2 5 1 1 Foreign policy/foreign affairs 2 2 1 3 1 Defense/military/national security 2 4 - 2 1 Miscellaneous foreign affairs 2 3 2 2 1 Politicians/corrupt politicians 2 1 1 2 2 Big government/bureaucracy 2 5 2 2 2 Barack Obama/the president 2 4 2 1 3 Religious values 2 4 * 2 3 Terrorism (general) 2 3 3 2 2 Islamic extremists/Al Qaeda/ Isis 2 1 2 3 1 Other13 9171224 Don't know/No answer 5 6 5 5 4 Q4. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling foreign policy? Approve3712643341 Disapprove4979215045 Don’t know/No answer14 9151713 Q5. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the economy?
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TOTAL RESPONDENTS TotalRepDemIndApr15d % % % % % Approve4515764046 Disapprove4979195247 Don’t know/No answer 7 6 5 8 7 Q6. Do you approve or disapprove of the way Congress is handling its job? Approve1518131412 Disapprove7872827880 Don’t know/No answer 810 5 8 9 Q7. How would you rate the condition of the national economy these days? Is it very good, fairly good, fairly bad or very bad? Very good 5 1 8 6 4 Fairly good4025593641 Fairly bad3647214033 Very bad1826111720 Don’t know/No answer 1 1 - 2 1 Q8. Do you think the economy is getting better, getting worse, or staying about the same? Better2710472333 Worse2737162926 Same4652384840 Don’t know/No answer * - * 1 * Q12. Thinking about U.S. elections, do you think all Americans have an equal chance to influence the elections process, or do you think wealthy Americans have more of a chance to influence the elections process than other Americans? May14c Equal influence3143262823 Wealthy have more influence6655736875 Don’t know/no answer 2 1 1 4 2 Q32. Thinking about the role of money in American political campaigns today, do you think money has too much influence, too little influence, or is it about right? Too much84809084 Too little 5 5 2 6 About right1014 8 9 Don’t know/no answer 1 1 * 1
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Q34. Which of the following three statements comes closest to expressing your overall view of the way political campaigns are funded in the United States: 1) On the whole, the system for funding political campaigns works pretty well and only minor changes are necessary to make it work better, or 2) there are some good things in the system for funding political campaigns but fundamental changes are needed, or 3) the system for funding political campaigns has so much wrong with it that we need to completely rebuild it. TOTAL RESPONDENTS TotalRepDemIndJul00a* % % % % % Only minor changes13161410 7 Fundamental changes3945383638 Completely rebuild4636465148 No changes needed (Vol.) * 1 - 1 -- Don’t know/no answer 2 1 3 2 7
*Among registered voters
Q35. Looking ahead, are you optimistic or pessimistic that changes will be made to improve the way political campaigns are funded in the U.S.? THINK AT LEAST MINOR CHANGES ARE NEEDED Optimistic39334837 Pessimistic58644860 Don’t know/no answer 3 4 4 3 Q36. Which one of the following two positions on campaign financing do you favor more: limiting the amount of money individuals can contribute to political campaigns, or allowing individuals to contribute as much money to political campaigns as they'd like? TOTAL RESPONDENTS TotalRepDemIndOct14f Limiting7771837776 Allowing2129142120 Don’t know/no answer 2 * 3 3 5 Q38. Currently, groups not affiliated with a candidate are able to spend unlimited amounts of money on advertisements during a political campaign. Do you think this kind of spending should be limited by law, or should it remain unlimited? Apr15d Should be limited7873857780 Should remain unlimited1924131917 Don’t know/no answer 3 3 2 4 3 Q37. Do you think groups not affiliated with a candidate that spend money during political campaigns should be required to publicly disclose their contributors, or do you think it’s okay for that information to remain private? Should publicly disclose75767675 Should remain private22232123 Don’t know/no answer 2 2 3 2
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