Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Summary of Findings As the Democratic-led Congress approaches the 100-day mark, pluralities of Americans approve of the way that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid are handling their leadership roles. However, the public gives Democrats mixed reviews for delivering on their campaign promises and for their policies and proposals. Slightly more [...]
Summary of Findings A solid majority of Americans say they want their congressional representative to support a bill calling for a withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq by August 2008. Nearly six-in-ten (59%) say they would like to see their representative vote for such legislation, compared with just 33% who want their representative to oppose [...]
Summary of Findings A survey conducted in association with National Public Radio A large majority of the American public thinks the country is more politically polarized than in the past, and an even greater number expresses a strong desire for political compromise. Fully three-quarters say they like political leaders who are willing to compromise, compared [...]
Summary of Findings The American public is angry with Congress, and this is bad news for the Republican Party. The belief that this Congress has accomplished less than its predecessors is markedly higher than at any point in the past nine years, and by a wide margin Republican leaders are blamed for this. Many more [...]
Summary of Findings In the aftermath of the Dubai ports deal, President Bush’s approval rating has hit a new low and his image for honesty and effectiveness has been damaged. Yet the public uncharacteristically has good things to say about the role that Congress played in this high-profile Washington controversy. Most Americans (58%) believe Congress [...]
Summary of Findings Americans express increasingly negative views of a wide range major institutions, reflecting strong discontent with national conditions. Over the past year, ratings have tumbled for the federal government and Congress. And it is not just Washington institutions that are being viewed less positively. Favorable opinions of business corporations are at their lowest [...]
Summary of Findings With an aging Supreme Court possibly facing major changes, the court’s public image has eroded significantly. Currently, 57% of Americans have a favorable opinion of the Supreme Court, with 30% expressing an unfavorable view. In the past, favorable views of the court typically surpassed 70%; even in January 2001, shortly after the [...]
Introduction and Summary Americans have ambivalent views about the appropriate role for government in curbing sex, violence and indecency in the entertainment media. They have doubts about the effectiveness of government action, and believe that public pressure in the form of complaints and boycotts is a better way of dealing with the problem. [...]
Summary of Findings The American public is not happy with the nation’s political leadership. President Bush’s approval rating remains below 50%, and just 39% approve of the job performance of Republican congressional leaders. Despite the paltry ratings for GOP leaders, however, Democrats have failed to benefit. The public has about the same low regard for [...]
Over the past four years, the American electorate has been dealt a series of body blows, each capable of altering the political landscape. The voting system broke down in a presidential election. A booming economy faltered, punctuated by revelations of one of the worst business scandals in U.S. history. And the country endured a [...]
Introduction and Summary Six months into her husband’s presidency, Laura Bush has made a positive impression on the American public. A strong majority (64%) has a favorable opinion of the first lady, and most approve of the way she’s handling her job. Although her predecessor, Hillary Clinton, drew a comparable favorability rating of 60% at [...]
Introduction and Summary As President Bush returns from his first overseas trip, his approval ratings are inching downward and an increasing number of Americans now say they disapprove of the job performance of GOP leaders on Capitol Hill. By contrast, the newly-installed Democratic leaders in the Senate are winning initially positive approval marks (50% vs. [...]
Introduction and Summary Dramatic increases in both the size and ethnic diversity of America’s population, reflected in the 2000 census, are drawing a mixed reaction from the public. Consistent with a long-term rise in favorable attitudes toward immigrants, more people say today’s immigrants are better able to adapt to American life than did so four [...]
Introduction and Summary As the country awaits the formal transfer of presidential power, Bill Clinton has never looked better to the American public, while his successor George W. Bush is receiving initial reviews that are more mixed, though still positive. The president leaves office with 61% of the public approving of the way he is [...]
Introduction and Summary Americans have long been ambivalent, if not downright conflicted, in their attitudes toward the federal government. They rail against the government’s inefficiency, but clamor for government programs that benefit them. Since the era of Vietnam and Watergate, a majority of Americans have said they can seldom trust the government to do the [...]
Introduction and Summary There is little public support for a plan to give the president a pay raise for the first time since 1969. When told that the president’s salary has not been increased since 1969, 49% favor a pay raise for the next president to take office, while 39% oppose it. But when people [...]
Introduction and Summary The House of Representatives’ decision to hold impeachment hearings has not significantly eroded support for Republicans. Despite a public backlash against proceeding with the inquiry, Republican congressional candidates continue to hold a small lead over Democrats among likely voters nationwide. Further, the Pew Research Center’s latest survey includes an oversample of voters [...]
Introduction and Summary American voters divided their support for Republican and Democratic congressional candidates nearly equally in the weeks between President Clinton’s televised admission that he had an improper relationship with Monica Lewinsky and news of Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr’s report to Congress on the matter. But with two months to go until the midterm [...]
Introduction and Summary As Congress heads home for the summer campaign season, both parties face tough sells for their election themes. Despite Democratic charges of a Republican-led do-nothing Congress, Americans see the 105th Congress as no different than others in recent memory. But the GOP will have to shore up its image on issues, as [...]
Introduction and Summary Washington’s leaders and the American public are out of step with one another. Public distrust of government is paralleled by a belief among members of Congress, presidential appointees and senior civil servants that the American public is too ill-informed to make wise decisions about important issues. Washington leaders also significantly underestimate the [...]
Introduction and Summary Americans continue to distrust the government, although there are signs that hostility toward government has begun to diminish. There is also considerable evidence that distrust of government is strongly connected to how people feel about the overall state of the nation. Today, personal satisfaction is soaring, the economy is thriving and confidence [...]
Introduction and Summary For the first time in a very long time, Americans are happy with the country’s course and it is beginning to pay dividends to the political establishment. Not only are Bill Clinton’s approval ratings approaching Reagan’s at a comparable point, but support for Congressional incumbents is at a decade high, and interest [...]
Introduction and Summary Top news stories from Washington are not connecting with the American people, according to the latest News Interest Index poll. A summit meeting, the growing campaign finance controversy and the legislative impasse on Capitol Hill have so far failed to stir the public. Just 6% of Americans followed very closely news about [...]
Introduction and Summary Criticism of the GOP legislative agenda and the President’s improved standing in the polls now threaten prospects for continued Republican control of the House. Generic support for GOP Congressional candidates has significantly eroded over the past six months. While things are looking up for the Democrats, there may be worrisome parallels to [...]
Report Summary Americans see less gridlock in Washington after the first 100 days of the 104th Congress, but few think they will be helped personally by the new legislation that has been considered, and most remain very dissatisfied with progress being made on the nation’s top problems.
Report Summary The Whitewater scandal is sapping public confidence in Bill Clinton. Almost as many Americans now disapprove, as approve of the way the President is handling his job, and there is a growing belief that the Whitewater case is disrupting the government’s ability to deal with major policy issues such as crime, healthcare reform, [...]
Report Summary The military victory in the Gulf has positioned Republicans to establish the GOP as the dominant national political party. The latest nationwide survey by the Times Mirror Center For The People & The Press finds more Americans calling themselves Republicans than Democrats and shows the GOP with a 10 percentage point lead in [...]
Seen through the Times Mirror Center for the People & the Press’ political typology of 1990, the American electorate presents a disquieting picture of political gridlock. Despite the personal popularity of President Bush, cynicism toward the political system in general is growing as the public in unprecedented numbers associates Republicans with wealth and greed, [...]
1615 L Street, NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20036
202.419.4300 | Main
202.419.4349 | Fax
202.419.4372 | Media Inquiries
About Pew Research Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts.
