CBS NEWS POLL For Release: Friday, November 11, 2011 6:30 pm (ET)

The President, Congress and the Economy November 6-10, 2011

43% approve of the job Barack Obama is doing as president; 47% disapprove. The Presidents approval rating on handling the economy continues to be low - just 34% approve, while 60% disapprove a record high. 86% say the economy is in bad shape. 9% approves of the job Congress is doing. Both parties receive criticism: just one in five Americans approves of the job Congressional Democrats or Republicans are doing.

Presidential Approval

President Obamas job approval rating is now 43%, down three points from last month and the same rating as September. Slightly more, 47%, disapprove. President Obamas Overall Job Approval Rating Now 10/2011 9/2011 Approve 43% 46% 43% Disapprove 47 46 50 The presidential election is one year away, and while President Obamas job approval is below 50%, it is only slightly below the approval ratings of his predecessors Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan at this point in their presidencies both of whom were successfully re-elected the following year. George W. Bush, whose approval rating was 50% at a comparable point in time, also won a second term. Comparisons to modern one-term presidents are mixed. President Obamas approval rating is lower than President George H. W. Bushs in November 1991, but President Bushs approval rating dropped precipitously during 1992. In contrast, President Obamas current approval rating is much higher than the 30% Jimmy Carter received in late 1979. Presidential Job Approval Ratings G.W. Bill G.H.W. Bush Clinton Bush 11/2003 10/1995 11/1991 50% 47% 51% 42 39 37

Approve Disapprove

Barack Obama Now 43% 47

Ronald Jimmy Reagan Carter 10/1983 11/1979 49% 30% 36 50

Democrats and Republicans hold opposing views of the president: 81% of Republicans disapprove, while 76% of Democrats approve. Among independents, just 39% approve and more, 47% disapprove. President Obamas Overall Job Approval Rating All Reps Dems Inds Approve 43% 12% 76% 39% Disapprove 47 81 21 47 At just 34%, President Obamas approval rating on handling the economy matches his all-time low in this poll;, and 60% disapprove a new high. His approval rating on handling foreign policy is higher, at 45%. Since the death of Osama bin Laden, terrorism is a strong issue for President Obama: 63% approve of his handling of that. Obamas Approval Ratings on Approve Disapprove Handling terrorism 63% 28 Foreign policy 45% 41 The economy 34% 60

Congress Congress job approval rating is just 9% now, matching the approval rating Congress received late last month, the lowest level ever recorded in CBS News Polls. Congress Job Approval Rating Total Reps Dems Inds 9% 13% 10% 6% 83 78 82 86

Approve Disapprove

The public criticizes both Congressional parties: just one in five Americans approves of how either the Democrats or Republicans in Congress are handling their jobs. While there has been little change in views of the Republicans, approval of Congressional Democrats has fallen six points since September. Approve/Disapprove of Now 9/2011 Democrats in Congress Approve 22% 28% Disapprove 66 63 Republicans in Congress Approve Disapprove

9/2010 30% 58

19% 71

19% 72

20% 68

The Economy Americans continue to be pessimistic about the economy. Only 13% think the economy is in good shape now, and 86% say it is bad. 32% think the economy is getting worse; just 18% think it is improving.

Getting better Getting worse Staying the same

Now 18% 32 50

Economy is 10/2011 14% 36 49

9/2011 12% 40 46

2/2011 10/2010 32% 25% 22 28 45 46

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This poll was conducted by telephone from November 6-10, 2011 among 1,182 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 may be higher. This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

CBS NEWS POLL The President, Congress and the Economy NOVEMBER 6-10, 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 % % % % 43 12 76 39 47 81 21 47 10 7 3 14

Approve Disapprove DK/NA q2 blank

Oct11a1 % 46 46 8

q3 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling foreign policy? Approve Disapprove DK/NA 45 41 14 19 74 7 71 18 11 41 38 21 50 31 19

q4 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the economy? Approve Disapprove DK/NA q5 blank q6 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the threat of terrorism? Jun11c 63 27 10 34 60 6 7 90 3 65 30 5 27 65 8 38 56 6

Approve Disapprove DK/NA q7 blank

63 28 9

44 47 9

82 12 6

60 29 11

q8 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Congress is handling its job? Oct11a1 9 84 7

Approve Disapprove DK/NA

9 83 8

13 78 9

10 82 8

6 86 8

q9 Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Democrats in Congress are handling their job? Sep11a 28 63 9

Approve Disapprove DK/NA

22 66 12

7 87 6

47 43 10

13 70 17

q10 Do you approve or disapprove of the way the Republicans in Congress are handling their job? ** TOTAL RESPONDENTS ** *** Party ID *** Total Rep Dem Ind % % % % 19 47 7 12 71 47 89 72 10 6 4 16

Approve Disapprove DK/NA

Sep11a % 19 72 9 Is it very

q11 How would you rate the condition of the national economy these days? good, fairly good, fairly bad, or very bad?

Very good Fairly good Fairly bad Very bad DK/NA

1 12 41 45 1

1 4 37 59 0

3 20 41 36 0

0 10 44 45 1

Oct11a1 1 13 50 36 0

q12 Do you think the economy is getting better, getting worse, or staying about the same? Better Worse Same DK/NA 18 32 50 0 11 42 47 0 29 20 50 1 13 35 51 1 14 36 49 1

Total Respondents Total Republicans Total Democrats Total Independents

Unweighted 1182 341 368 473

Weighted

306 (26%) 374 (32%) 502 (42%)