Oh my: Obama under 50% approval for first time in CBS poll

And not just a point or two under, either.

President Obama’s job approval rating has fallen to 46 percent, according to a new CBS News poll.

That rating is Mr. Obama’s lowest yet in CBS News polling, and the poll marks the first time his approval rating has fallen below the 50 percent mark. Forty-one percent now say they disapprove of Mr. Obama’s performance as president…

Just 41 percent now approve of his handling of the economy, which Americans say is the nation’s most pressing issue. Forty-seven percent disapprove. The president’s marks on handling health care, with reforms still under debate in Congress, are even lower – just 36 percent approve, while 54 percent disapprove. Both of these approval ratings are the lowest of Mr. Obama’s presidency.

Approval among indies? A robust 42 percent, which may help explain why he’s not headed to Massachusetts this week. The easy explanation here is that this is a backlash from watching him play golf after the Flight 253 attack, but tain’t so: 57 percent approve of how the administration handled that. What I think we’re looking at is steady erosion over unemployment plus the horrifying realization that the Democrats really, truly are going to pass this giant crap sandwich. In fact, aside from a couple of Harris Internet polls, his approval on health care has never been as low as 36 percent in any poll dating back to the beginning of the year. Amazing.

No worries, though. Axelrod says they’re totally going to sell it once it passes, and NPR thinks he’s had a simply sterling first year. Exit question: Was “a solid B+” too low of a grade?

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