Truth over Happiness
Will Americans listen only to Happy Talk from a president? Here's what the record shows.
Support for Stimulus Plan Slips, But Obama Rides High
Overview After weeks of intense debate over President Obama’s economic stimulus plan, a narrow majority of Americans (51%) who have heard about the $800 billion plan say it is a good idea, while 34% say it is a bad idea. In January, the balance of opinion regarding the plan was more positive: 57% of those […]
From Candidate to President
One-word descriptions of President Obama have changed dramatically since he was a candidate.
As Obama Takes Office, Global Press Turns to Regional Concerns
by Richard Wike, Associate Director, Pew Global Attitudes Project, and Michael Remez, Senior Writer, Pew Research Center for the People & the Press The celebratory tone that characterized international media coverage of Barack Obama’s historic election victory was again pervasive in many of the stories about his inauguration as the 44th American president. “History was […]
The Annotated Inauguration
Yesterday's inauguration was the first to be fully digitized, annotated and archived online.
Obama Cabinet Appointees Highly Visible
Summary of Findings Public awareness of Barack Obama’s choices for cabinet and other high level posts is substantially higher than awareness of the top picks by George W. Bush and Bill Clinton just before they were first inaugurated. About two-thirds of Americans (65%) can name at least one person that Obama has chosen for a […]
Hispanics and the New Administration
A year and a half after a lengthy, often rancorous debate over immigration reform filled the chambers of a stalemated Congress, the issue appears to have receded in importance among one of the groups most affected by it--Latinos.
Strong Confidence in Obama – Country Seen As Less Politically Divided
Overview Public confidence in Barack Obama to deal with the nation’s most pressing problems is quite high, with about seven-in-ten saying they have at least a fair amount of confidence that he will do the right thing when it comes to mending the economy, preventing terrorism, and in dealing with Iraq. Notably, many Americans not […]
Religion and the Presidency
On Jan. 20, 2009, Barack Obama will be sworn in as the 44th president of the United States. The Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life has assembled a variety of resources on religion and the presidency, including reports, event transcripts, polling data and a graphic featuring the religious affiliations of U.S. presidents […]
States of the Union Before and After Bush
What a difference eight years can make -- or not. As shown in a series of tables, some things have changed a great deal since George W. Bush was elected president in 2000, but other things, most notably certain American beliefs and attitudes, have remained remarkably constant.
