People, they get wary

June 20, 2009 04:01 pm

— President Obama’s honeymoon with the American people just might be over.
The Wall Street Journal and NBC News last week released findings from a recent poll of 1,008 adults.
• 58 percent said the president and Congress should focus on bringing down the budget deficit.
• Almost 7 out of 10 said they are concerned about the government’s involvement in the economy and U.S. auto industry.
• 37 percent said the president is taking on too many problems.
• 46 percent believe the economy will improve within the next 12 months. That’s up from 38 percent in April.
• Half said the president’s appointment to the Supreme Court, Sonia Sotomayor, is qualified for the job.
If the poll is indeed a true reflection of the opinions of Americans, folks here are very distrustful of Washington’s bailouts of the banks, GM and Chrysler. And they’ve absolutely had it with the run-up of the federal deficit. The president will have to slow his spending spree or risk losing favor with the public.
So far, that hasn’t happened – much. Fifty-six percent of the poll’s respondents said they approved of Obama’s handling of the presidency – down from 61 percent in April.
There was, however, some good news for Kokomo and its autoworkers in the poll. More than half of the respondents said they are considering the purchase of an American car. And of that group, 40 percent said the financial crisis at GM and Chrysler has made them more likely to buy.
Perhaps more Americans now realize what we’ve known for years: Detroit’s Big Three are making the most fuel-efficient, safest, reliable vehicles in their histories. The quality of their product rivals that of any carmaker.
Apparently it took two bankruptcies for folks to figure that out.