CBS News Poll

For release Tuesday, February 15, 2011

6:30 pm EST

President Obama, Congress Square Off on Issues

February 11-14, 2011

• The President and the new Congress have begun to address the deficit and last year’s
health care legislation, among other issues. Americans trust President Barack Obama
(42%) and the Republicans in Congress (42%) equally to lower the deficit.

• A majority of the public would disapprove of Congress cutting off funding for health care
reform – although most also disapprove of the health care law and many aren’t sure of
its impact on the health care system.

• The percentage of Americans that thinks government regulates business too heavily has
risen since fall 2008, during the financial crisis.

• The President’s overall approval rating is 48%, similar to last month.

• Congress’ approval rating is up since last fall, but still low. 24% now approve.

The Budget Deficit

As Congress and the President take up discussions of the federal budget and deficit, equal
percentages trust the President (42%) and the Republicans in Congress (42%) to make the right
decisions about it.

Trust More to Make Right Decisions about Reducing the Deficit

Barack Obama 42%
Republicans in Congress 42
Neither 9
Both 2

Some Americans – but not a majority – expect they will have to feel some personal pain in order
to reduce the deficit. 49% expect that the government will have to cut programs that benefit
them in order to lower the deficit, while nearly as many, 41%, think that won’t be necessary.

To Lower Deficit, Necessary to Cut Programs that Benefit You?

Yes 49%
No 41

Both Republicans and independents expect this will be needed, while most Democrats do not.

However fewer, just 37%, expect it will be necessary to increase taxes on people like
themselves. Those expectations rise along with income; a majority of Americans with incomes
of $100,000 or more expect it will be necessary for them to pay higher taxes in order to lower
the deficit.

To Lower Deficit, Necessary to Increase Taxes for People Like You?

Less than
All $50k $50k-$100k $100k+
Yes 37% 30% 40% 62%
No 59 66 55 36

Americans continue to rate the federal budget deficit as a serious problem, although it ranks
second – far below the economy and jobs - on the list of important issues facing the country.
Seven in 10 call it very serious, and another 25% say it is somewhat serious. Those numbers
have remained steady over the past few months.

Health Care Reform

Another issue Congress may grapple with in the coming weeks is health care reform: some
members of Congress who are opposed to the health care reform legislation passed last year
have talked about defunding the new health care laws. That is not a tactic most Americans
would support; just over half of Americans disapprove of cutting off funding to the new law, and
just 35% approve. But among Republicans, approval rises to 57%.

Cut Off Funding for Health Care Law

All Reps Dems Inds
Approve 35% 57% 12% 38%
Disapprove 55 34 82 49

Overall, Americans are wary of the new health care reform law: they are uncertain what the
impact on the health care system will be, and most still disapprove of the legislation.

21% think the new law will make the system better, but about as many, 23%, think the law will
make the system worse – and 44% say they don’t know enough to say what the law’s impact
will be. Uncertainty has increased since the law was first passed last year.

And while there are partisan differences – 43% of Republicans think it will make the system
worse, but 40% of Democrats see it as an improvement – large segments of Republicans,
Democrats and independents don’t know what effect the law will have on the health care
system.

Effect of New Law on Health Care System

All Reps Dems Inds
Make it better 21% 10% 40% 14%
Make it worse 23 43 5 23
No change 9 7 11 9
Don’t know enough to say 44 39 40 50

As has been the case since the law was passed nearly a year ago, more Americans disapprove
than approve of last year’s health care reform legislation. Now, 33% approve, while 51%
disapprove, including 34% who disapprove strongly.
 Views on Health Care Reform Law
Now 10/2010 7/2010 3/2010
Strongly approve 14% 16% 17% 16%
Somewhat approve 19 23 19 16
Somewhat disapprove 17 16 16 14
Strongly disapprove 34 27 33 39

Views of the law divide along partisan lines, but Republicans feel more strongly about the issue
than Democrats: 58% of Republicans strongly disapprove of the legislation; 30% of Democrats
strongly approve.

Regulating Business

Some members of Congress have also talked about reducing regulations on business. In the
aftermath of the serious problems faced by the U.S. financial system in late 2008, more
Americans felt the government was regulating business too little. Now, that has changed. Just
27% think there is too little regulation of business, while far more, 45%, think there is too much.
17% think there are the right amount of regulations.

Federal Government Regulates Business…

Now 2/2009 9/2008 2/2002 1/1986
Too much 45% 28% 28% 35% 41%
Too little 27 40 43 26 22
Right amount 17 18 16 25 22

Congress’ Job Approval

CBS News measured the job approval rating of the new Congress for the first time in this poll.
While most Americans continue to disapprove of the job Congress is doing, the percentage that
approves has risen since last fall. 24% now approve of Congress’ job, up from 17% in
November and the highest since the fall of 2009. Still, majorities of all partisan stripes
disapprove.

Congress Job Rating

Now 11/2010 10/2010 11/2009
Approve 24% 17% 14% 26%
Disapprove 62 72 76 60

The President

President Barack Obama’s overall job approval rating is now 48%, similar to what it was last
month. 41% disapprove of the way he is handling his job as president.

President Obama’s Overall Job Rating

Now 1/2011 2/2010
Approve 48% 49% 46%
Disapprove 41 39 45

The President remains popular among those in his own party, while most Republicans disapprove of
the job he is doing. Among independents, 42% approve while 39% disapprove – similar to last month.
 President Obama’s Overall Job Rating
Approve Disapprove
Democrats 82% 11
Republicans 16% 77
Independents 42% 39

On specific areas, the President continues to receive approval ratings mostly below the 50%
mark. On the economy, the nation’s top concern, 42% of Americans approve of the job he is
doing, and even fewer (31%) approve of Mr. Obama’s handling of the deficit. However, the
President gets higher marks for his handling of the situation in Egypt: 50% approve, while 22%
disapprove. More than a quarter doesn’t have an opinion.

President Obama’s Ratings on Handling….

Approve Disapprove
Budget deficit 31% 58
The economy 42% 50
Foreign policy 46% 33
Egypt 50% 22

More think President Barack Obama shares their priorities than think either major party in
Congress does. 45% of Americans say the President has the same priorities for the country as
they do, but more – 51% - say he does not.

Republicans and Democrats think their own party in Congress shares their priorities, while
majorities of independents do not think their priorities are shared by either the Republicans or
Democrats in Congress.

Shares Your Priorities for the Country

Yes No
President Obama 45% 51
Republicans in Congress 32% 57
Democrats in Congress 29% 62

The President is viewed as a strong leader by the American public: 62% say he has strong
qualities of leadership. Most Democrats and independents view Mr. Obama as a strong leader,
but just over a third of Republicans feel that way.

The Tea Party

As the Tea Party caucus in the House of Representatives prepares to meet for the first time
later this week, more than half of Tea Party supporters are satisfied with the amount of attention
the Republicans in Congress are giving the views of the movement, but a third say the
Republicans in Congress are paying too little attention to their views.

Republicans in Congress and Attention to the Tea Party Movement

All Tea Party
Too much 26% 10%
Too little 17 34
Right amount 29 51
DK/NA 28 5
20% of Americans in this poll identify themselves as supporters of the Tea Party; they are
mostly conservative (61%) and Republican (54%).

Americans’ overall views of the Tea Party movement are slightly more negative than positive,
but more than half are undecided or haven’t heard enough about the movement to have an
opinion.

Views of Tea Party Movement

Now 10/2010
Favorable 18% 24%
Not favorable 25 26
Undecided 19 21
Haven’t heard enough 36 27

45% of the public says the views of the Tea Party movement do not reflect those of most
Americans; only 27% think they do. Tea Partiers themselves are more likely to think the views of
the movement represent those of the country at large.

Does the Tea Party Reflect the Views of Most Americans?

All Tea Party
Yes 27% 67%
No 45 21
Don’t know 26 8

Half of Republicans say the Tea Party reflects the views of the Republican Party. Half either say
it does not, or don’t know.

Does the Tea Party Reflect the Views of Most Republicans?

(Among Republicans)
Yes 49%
No 20
Don’t know 28

_________________________________________________________________________
This poll was conducted by telephone on February 11-14, 2011 among 1031 adults nationwide. Phone
numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cell phones. The error due to sampling
for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for
subgroups is higher. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on
Public Polls.
CBS NEWS POLL
The President and the Congress
February 11-14, 2011

q1 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
*** Party ID ***
Total Rep Dem Ind Jan11c
% % % % %
Approve 48 16 82 42 49
Disapprove 41 77 11 39 39
DK/NA 11 7 7 19 12

q2-q3 RELEASED SEPARATELY

q4 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling foreign policy?

Approve 46 24 78 36 46
Disapprove 33 56 9 36 32
DK/NA 21 20 13 28 22

q5 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the economy?

Approve 42 12 73 38 41
Disapprove 50 86 22 48 52
DK/NA 8 2 5 14 7

q6 BLANK

q7 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the federal budget
deficit?

Approve 31 10 57 25 30
Disapprove 58 84 36 56 56
DK/NA 11 6 7 19 14

q8 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the situation in
Egypt?

Approve 50 33 76 41
Disapprove 22 36 7 25
DK/NA 28 31 17 34

q9 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Congress is handling its job?

Nov10c
%
Approve 24 27 22 23 17
Disapprove 62 60 67 61 72
DK/NA 14 13 11 16 11

q10-q19 RELEASED SEPARATELY

q20 Do you think all Americans should be required to have health insurance, or don't you
think they should?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
*** Party ID ***
Total Rep Dem Ind Jan11a
% % % % %
Should 50 34 67 47 54
Should not 46 63 29 46 42
DK/NA 4 3 4 7 4

Q21 RELEASED SEPARATELY

Q22 & Q23 BLANK

q24 Do you think the Republicans in Congress have the same priorities for the country as
you have, or don’t they?

Have 32 61 13 26
Do not have 57 32 81 56
DK/NA 11 7 6 18

q25 Do you think the Democrats in Congress have the same priorities for the country as
you have, or don’t they?

Have 29 13 55 20
Do not have 62 83 38 66
DK/NA 9 4 7 14

q26-31 BLANK

q32 Do you think of Barack Obama as more of a liberal, a moderate, or a conservative?

IF LIBERAL, ASK: Would you say he is very liberal or only somewhat liberal?
IF CONSERVATIVE, ASK: Would you say he is only somewhat conservative or very
conservative?

Sep10b
Very liberal 24 42 11 22 29
Somewhat liberal 20 26 19 18 22
Moderate 32 16 49 30 28
Somewhat conservative 9 4 14 9 6
Very conservative 2 1 3 3 3
Don't know/No answer 13 11 4 18 12

q33 Do you think Barack Obama has strong qualities of leadership, or not?

Jun10b
Has 62 38 88 59 62
Does not have 34 60 10 35 35
Don't know/No answer 4 2 2 6 3

q34 Do you think Barack Obama has the same priorities for the country as you have, or
doesn't he?

Jan11c
Yes 45 17 79 37 42
No 51 81 17 58 52
Don't know/No answer 4 2 4 5 6
q35-36 BLANK

q37 Do you think the federal government regulates business too much these days, does it
regulate business too little, or does it impose the right amount of regulation on
business?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
*** Party ID ***
Total Rep Dem Ind Feb09a
% % % % %
Too much 45 66 28 44 28
Too little 27 9 39 29 40
Right amount 17 14 26 11 18
Depends (Vol.) 4 4 3 5 4
Don't know/No answer 7 7 4 11 10

q38 BLANK

q39 How serious a problem do you think the budget deficit is for the country right now --
very serious, somewhat serious, not too serious, or not at all serious?

Jan11c
Very serious 70 81 65 66 70
Somewhat serious 25 17 30 27 25
Not too serious 3 1 5 3 3
Not at all serious 1 1 0 2 0
DK/NA 1 0 0 2 2

q40 In order to reduce the federal budget deficit, do you think it will be necessary or
not necessary to cut back on government programs that benefit people like you?

Necessary 49 64 32 51 55
Not necessary 41 24 59 38 39
DK/NA 10 12 9 11 6

q41 In order to reduce the federal budget deficit, do you think it will be necessary or
not necessary to increase taxes on people like you?

Necessary 37 35 42 34 41
Not necessary 59 61 55 62 56
Don't know/No answer 4 4 3 4 3

q42 Who do you trust more to make the right decisions about reducing the federal budget
deficit-- the Republicans in Congress or Barack Obama?

Republicans in Congress 42 81 16 35 44
Barack Obama 42 9 74 39 42
Both (Vol.) 2 3 3 2 1
Neither (Vol.) 9 4 4 15 8
DK/NA 5 3 3 9 5

q43-45 BLANK
q46 From what you've heard or read, do you approve or disapprove of the health care law
that was enacted last March?
IF APPROVE, ASK: Do you strongly approve or somewhat approve?
IF DISAPPROVE, ASK: Do you somewhat disapprove or strongly disapprove?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
*** Party ID ***
Total Rep Dem Ind Oct10a
% % % % %
Strongly approve 14 5 30 8 16
Somewhat approve 19 7 32 17 23
Somewhat disapprove 17 19 12 20 16
Strongly disapprove 34 58 16 31 27
DK/NA 16 11 10 24 18

q47 In the next few years, do you think the reforms in the current health care law will
make the health care system better, make it worse, not change the health care system one
way or the other, or don't you know enough about the reforms yet to say?

Mar10b
Better 21 10 40 14 29
Worse 23 43 5 23 34
No change 9 7 11 9 8
Don't know enough 44 39 40 50 28
Don't know/No answer 3 1 4 4 1

q48 Some members of Congress have said they may stop funding for the new health care
law. Regardless of how you feel about the new health care legislation, would you approve
or disapprove if Congress stopped funding for the new health care law?

Approve 35 57 12 38
Disapprove 55 34 82 49
DK/NA 10 9 6 13

Q49-Q54 BLANK
Q55-q56 RELEASED SEPARATELY

q57 Is your opinion of the Tea Party movement favorable, not favorable, undecided, or
haven't you heard enough about the Tea Party movement yet to have an opinion?

Oct10e
Favorable 18 36 3 18 24
Not favorable 25 6 49 19 26
Undecided 19 22 14 21 21
Haven't heard enough 36 35 34 39 27
Refused 2 1 0 3 2

q58 Regardless of your overall opinion, do you think the views of the people involved in
the Tea Party movement generally reflect the views of most Americans, or not?

Oct10a
Reflect most Americans 27 41 13 28 30
Do not reflect most Americans 45 27 67 40 41
Both/Some (vol.) 2 4 1 2 1
DK/NA 26 28 19 30 28
q59 Regardless of your overall opinion, do you think the views of the people involved in
the Tea Party movement generally reflect the views of most Republicans, or not?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
*** Party ID ***
Total Rep Dem Ind Oct10e
% % % % %
Reflect most Republicans 36 49 30 30 40
Do not reflect most Reps 35 20 47 35 36
Both/Some (vol.) 2 3 1 1 2
DK/NA 27 28 22 34 22

q60 Do you think the Republicans in Congress are paying too much attention to the views
of the Tea Party movement, too little attention to the views of the Tea Party movement,
or the right amount of attention to the views of the Tea Party movement?

Too much 26 12 39 26
Too little 17 25 16 13
Right amount 29 34 23 30
DK/NA 28 29 22 31

q61 BLANK

q62 Do you think the U.S. is doing the right thing by fighting the war in Afghanistan
now, or should the U.S. not be involved in Afghanistan now?

Sep10b
Right thing 37 52 29 33 38
Not involved 54 38 66 55 54
DK/NA 9 10 5 12 8

q63 What is your impression of how the war in Afghanistan is going for the United States
right now -- very well, somewhat well, somewhat badly, or very badly?

Oct10e
Very well 3 3 4 3 3
Somewhat well 33 39 32 28 35
Somewhat badly 36 36 41 32 36
Very badly 19 15 18 22 19
DK/NA 9 7 5 15 7

q64 BLANK
Q65-q72 RELEASED SEPARATELY

q75 Do you consider yourself to be a supporter of the Tea Party movement, or not?

Jan11c
%
Yes 20 38 7 18 28
No 63 43 78 65 61
DK/NA 17 19 15 17 11

Unweighted Weighted
Total Respondents 1031
Total Republicans 298 289 (28%)
Total Democrats 345 333 (32%)
Total Independents 388 409 (40%)