Tuesday, May 03, 2011

Public "Relieved" By bin Laden's Death, Obama's Job Approval Rises

An overnight survey of 654 adults, conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and The Washington Post finds that 72% say they feel "relieved" by Osama bin Laden's death, while 60% feel "proud" and 58% say they are "happy." Far fewer, just 16%, say the news of bin Laden's death makes them feel "afraid."

Barack Obama's job approval rating has jumped in the wake of bin Laden's killing. In the one-day survey, 56% say they approve of the way Obama is handling his job as president while 38% disapprove. Last month, Obama's job rating was about evenly divided -- 47% approved, 45% disapproved. Obama has gotten about the same boost in job approval as did former President Bush in the days after the U.S. military's capture of Saddam Hussein in December 2003. Following Saddam's capture, Bush's rating rose from 50% to 57%. (A more comprehensive survey will be conducted May 5-8 to follow up on these preliminary reactions to the death of bin Laden and Obama's job performance.)


Source: Pew Center for People and the Press

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