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June 8, 2011

Only 24% Say They Share Obama's Political Views

Most voters still believe President Obama is more liberal than they are, while just one-out-of-four say they share the same ideological views as the president.

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June 7, 2011

Generic Republican Candidate 45%, Obama 42%

For the second week in a row, a generic Republican candidate edges President Obama 45% to 42% among Likely U.S. Voters in a hypothetical 2012 election matchup, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

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June 7, 2011

Economic Optimism At Lowest Levels In Over Two Years

Just days after the government's announcement that unemployment has risen to 9.1%,  short- and long-term confidence in the U.S. economy are at the lowest levels of the Obama presidency.

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June 7, 2011

44% Say They’re Conservative on Fiscal Issues, 39% Moderate, 14% Liberal

Voters remain more conservative when it comes to money than they are on social policy, but 29% still say they are conservative in both areas.

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June 7, 2011

Voters Now See GOP in Congress Nearly As Extreme As Democrats

For the first time, voters feel the agenda of congressional Republicans is nearly as extreme as that of Democrats in Congress.

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June 7, 2011

Six Sneaky Ways States Are Raising Small-Business Taxes By Cliff Ennico

It's no secret that state and local governments are hard up for money. Even with the economy improving somewhat and tax revenues increasing, most American states right now are facing budget shortfalls.

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June 7, 2011

Mr. Weiner, Put Up That Wall! By Froma Harrop

A New York Democrat has joined what had been a largely Republican caucus of congressmen committing sexually inappropriate online behavior. A picture of Rep. Anthony Weiner's crotch (in underwear) appeared on a Twitter stream sent to a Seattle college student. At first, Weiner said that the photo might not be him and insisted he didn't send it. "My system was hacked," he complained.

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June 7, 2011

54% Say Obama Qualified To Be President, 47% Say Biden Is Not

Most voters agree that Barack Obama is qualified to be president, but nearly as many don’t think Vice President Joe Biden is qualified to take his place.

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June 7, 2011

John Edwards, Campaign Reformer By Debra J. Saunders

As a U.S. senator, John Edwards, a staunch defender of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform bill, decried "a system in which huge amounts of money (continue to) flow unregulated into the campaign process and ordinary people feel as if their vote makes no difference anymore."

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June 6, 2011

Generic Congressional Ballot: Republicans 43%, Democrats 37%

Republicans hold a six-point lead over Democrats on the Generic Congressional Ballot for the week ending Sunday, June 5.

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June 6, 2011

47% Worry Government Will Do Too Much To Help Economy

Voters remain narrowly divided over how much the government should get involved in trying to turn around the U.S. economy. 

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June 6, 2011

49% See Romney As Qualified to Be President, Less Confident of Other GOP Candidates

Mitt Romney is the only Republican 2012 hopeful that a sizable number of voters considers qualified to be president. Sarah Palin is the one they view as least qualified, but, at this early stage, many voters are still in the dark about all the possible candidates.

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June 6, 2011

54% Favor Repeal of Health Care Law, 56% Say Law Will Increase Deficit

Voters continue to favor repeal of the national health care law passed last year and believe the legislation will increase the federal deficit. 

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June 6, 2011

Obama Tunes Out, and Business Goes on Hiring Strike By Michael Barone

Last week, I noted that various forms of the word "unexpected" almost inevitably appeared in news stories about unfavorable economic developments. You can find them again in stories about Friday's shocking news, that only 54,000 net new jobs were created in the month of May and that unemployment rose to 9.1 percent.

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June 6, 2011

34% Say It’s Good for the Economy If Government Hires More

One-out-of-three Americans think it’s good for the U.S. economy if the government puts more people on the payroll, but most adults still don’t see government as the solution to long-term unemployment.

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June 5, 2011

America's Long Slide from 9/11 to Crown Beach By Debra J. Saunders

On Sept. 11, 2001, when two planes plunged into the World Trade Center, Americans watched in awe as New York firefighters, police and paramedics rushed to the scene at risk to their own lives. Some 343 firefighters and paramedics and 60 police officers paid the ultimate price in their desperate rush to save other lives.

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June 5, 2011

Playing With Default By Joe Conason

The current puppet play in Congress -- where Republicans sponsored a bill to raise the nation's debt ceiling only because they wanted to vote it down -- would be funny, if only they weren't risking economic disaster. Unfortunately they're not joking, as they push the country closer and closer to a potentially ruinous default.

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June 5, 2011

Pelosi Is Still Least Popular Congressional Leader

While she's much less often in the news these days, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi remains Congress' most disliked leader. But Pelosi earns higher favorables than Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid whose popularity has fallen to its lowest level in over two years.

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June 4, 2011

What They Told Us: Reviewing Last Week’s Key Polls - Week Ending June 3, 2011Week

The government announced on Friday that the nation’s unemployment rate rose to 9.1% in May, dashing high-level hopes of an economic recovery in the near future. But most Americans aren’t surprised.

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June 4, 2011

89% Say New Graduates Will Have Tough Time Finding a Job

With most college graduations over and high school graduations in progress, the impending entry into the “real world” is on the minds of many young adults, and often, the first thought is finding a job. But Americans overwhelmingly believe that won't be easy for this year's graduates.