Fox News/Opinion Dynamics Poll: President Bush: Week One
Friday, May 04, 2001
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NEW YORK — A majority of Americans like the newly inaugurated president as a person, but many are withholding judgment on George W. Bush's job performance, according to the latest FOX News/Opinion Dynamics poll.
61 percent have a favorable opinion of President Bush, and 64 percent have a favorable view of Vice President Dick Cheney. After only a few days on the job, 46 percent of Americans approve of the job Bush is doing, 14 percent disapprove, and fully 40 percent aren't sure.
The inaugural celebrations appear to have helped Americans form a positive opinion of First Lady Laura Bush. Her favorable rating moved from 49 percent in mid-January to 62 percent in the current poll.
Here are some other highlights from this week's poll, conducted January 24-25 with 902 registered voters nationwide.
"For a president who has claimed both a slender mandate and a need to unite, Bush's early abortion moves are a little risky," comments Opinion Dynamics President John Gorman.
"Abortion is a divisive issue with no clear winners and losers politically."
Fox News/Opinion Dynamics Poll Results
Polling was conducted by telephone January 24-25, 2001 in the evenings. The sample is 902 registered voters nationwide with a margin of error of ±3 percentage points. All trend is registered voters unless noted as likely voters (LV).
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1. I'm going to read the names of some prominent people. Please tell me whether you have a generally favorable or unfavorable opinion of each one. If you've never heard of someone, please just say so.
SCALE: 1. Favorable 2. Unfavorable 3. (Can't say) 4. (Never heard of)
George W. Bush:
| Favorable | Unfavorable | (Can't Say) | (Never Heard) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 61% | 27 | 12 | -- |
| 12 Jan 01 | 58% | 31 | 11 | -- |
| 1 Dec 00 | 60% | 34 | 6 | -- |
| 3 Nov 00 | 56% | 36 | 8 | -- |
2. Dick Cheney:
| Favorable | Unfavorable | (Can't Say) | (Never Heard) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 64% | 16 | 17 | 3 |
| 12 Jan 01 | 57% | 19 | 20 | 4 |
| 1 Dec 00 | 64% | 17 | 15 | 4 |
| 3 Nov 00 | 55% | 23 | 18 | 4 |
3. Laura Bush:
| Favorable | Unfavorable | (Can't Say) | (Never Heard) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 62% | 6 | 28 | 4 |
| 12 Jan 01 | 49% | 9 | 33 | 9 |
| 25 Aug 00 | 49% | 10 | 34 | 7 |
4. Jesse Jackson:
| Favorable | Unfavorable | (Can't Say) | (Never Heard) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 27% | 56 | 16 | 1 |
| 19 Nov 99 | 40% | 47 | 11 | 2 |
| 21 May 99 | 53% | 32 | 14 | 1 |
| 7 May 99 | 59% | 28 | 13 | -- |
| 17 Oct 97 | 48% | 34 | 15 | 3 |
5. John Ashcroft:
| Favorable | Unfavorable | (Can't Say) | (Never Heard) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 34% | 22 | 30 | 14 |
6. Do you approve or disapprove of the job George W. Bush is doing as president?
| Approve | 46% |
| Disapprove | 14% |
| (Not sure) | 40% |
7. Do you think religion plays too large or too small a role in most people's lives today? SCALE: 1. Too large 2. Too small 3. (About right) 4. (Not sure)
| Too large | Too small | (About right) | (Not sure) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 10% | 68 | 9 | 13 |
| 26 Mar 99 | 10% | 73 | 6 | 11 |
| 14 Jun 96 | 14% | 70 | 4 | 11 |
8. Do you think America is a more or less spiritual nation today than it was 25 years ago? SCALE: 1. More 2. Less 3. (Same) 4. (Don't know)
| More | Less | (Same) | (Don't know) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 16% | 67 | 9 | 8 |
| 26 Mar 99 | 16% | 72 | 5 | 7 |
| 31 Oct 97 | 33% | 56 | 5 | 6 |
9. Last week, the independent counsel agreed not to prosecute Bill Clinton in exchange for Clinton's admission that he gave false testimony about his relationship with Monica Lewinsky. In a statement about the agreement, Clinton said, quote: "I tried to walk a fine line between acting lawfully and testifying falsely, but I now recognize that I did not fully accomplish this goal and that certain of my responses to questions about Ms. Lewinsky were false.'' In his statement, do you think Clintons admits to lying under oath?
| All | Dems | GOP | Ind | |
| Yes, he admits lying | 67% | 60 | 71 | 70 |
| No, he doesn't admit lying | 23% | 26 | 23 | 20 |
| (Not sure) | 10% | 14 | 6 | 10 |
10. Which do you think was former President Clinton's greater achievement:
| All | Dems | GOP | Ind | |
| A strong economy, or | 56% | 83 | 32 | 55 |
| Self-preservation? | 34% | 11 | 56 | 37 |
| (Not sure) | 10% | 6 | 12 | 8 |
11. During Saturday's inaugural events for President Bush, former President Bill Clinton held a rally at Andrews Air Force Base. Do you think Clinton was simply saying goodbye to his staff and friends or was he trying to upstage Bush on his Inauguration Day?
| All | Dems | GOP | Ind | |
| Simply saying goodbye | 42% | 61 | 26 | 37 |
| Trying to upstage Bush | 36% | 17 | 55 | 36 |
| (Not sure) | 22% | 22 | 19 | 27 |
12. Hillary Clinton, Bill Clinton and Al and Tipper Gore, together, are all writing books that will come out soon. Which of these books are you most interested in reading:
| Hillary Clinton's book | 17% |
| Bill Clinton's book | 9% |
| Al and Tipper Gore's book? | 8% |
| (Will read all) | 3% |
| (Wouldn't/won't read any) | 61% |
| (Not sure) | 2% |
13. Do you think Hillary Clinton will tell the truth in her book or not?
| Yes | 35% |
| No | 47% |
| (Not sure) | 18% |
14. Have you ever cheated on a person you were in a relationship with?
| Yes | No | (Won't say) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 13% | 80 | 7 |
| 29 Jan 99 | 21% | 76 | 3 |
Have Cheated in a Relationship:
| All | 13% |
| Men | 14% |
| Women | 13% |
| Democrats | 17% |
| Republicans | 11% |
| Independents | 8% |
15. Today, do you think relations between the races in the United States are getting better or getting worse? SCALE: 1. Better 2. Worse 3. (Same) 4. (Not sure)
| Better | Worse | (Same) | (Not sure) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 51% | 28 | 12 | 9 |
| 21 May 99 | 48% | 33 | 12 | 7 |
| 17 Oct 97 | 42% | 36 | 13 | 9 |
| 14 Jun 96 | 25% | 59 | 10 | 6 |
16. February is Black History Month. Who do you think is the most influential African American alive today?
| 26 Jan 01 | 9 Jan 98 | |
| Colin Powell | 33% | 19% |
| Jesse Jackson | 20% | 13% |
| Oprah Winfrey | 5% | 7% |
| Bill Cosby | 1% | 4% |
| Michael Jordan | 1% | 4% |
| Nelson Mandela | 2% | 3% |
| Louis Farrakhan | --% | 3% |
| Muhammad Ali | --% | 1% |
| Maya Angelou | 1% | 1% |
| Tiger Woods | 1% | --% |
| Other - Specify | 6% | 8% |
| (Don't know/Refused) | 30% | 37% |
17. It was recently disclosed that civil rights leader Reverend Jesse Jackson fathered a child out of wedlock with a staff member from his Rainbow Coalition organization. Do you think Jackson should continue his public career or end his public career?
| Continue his career | 49% |
| End his career | 36% |
| (Not sure) | 15% |
18. In 1973, a Supreme Court decision called Roe v. Wade made abortion in the first three months of pregnancy legal. Do you think the Supreme Court should overturn Roe v. Wade or let it stand? SCALE: 1. Overturn Roe v. Wade 2. Let it stand 3. (Not sure)
| Overturn it | Let it stand | (Not sure) | ||
| 26 Jan 01 | 29% | 62 | 9 | |
| 25 Jun 99 | 29% | 63 | 8 | |
| 9 Jan 98 | 30% | 64 | 6 |
19. On the issue of abortion, would you say you are more pro-life or more pro-choice? SCALE: 1. Pro-choice 2. Pro-life 3. (Both, mix) 4. (Not sure)
| Pro-choice | Pro-life | (Both/mix) | (Not sure) | |
| 26 Jan 01 | 47% | 42 | 7 | 4 |
| 14 Jul 00 | 54% | 38 | 5 | 3 |
| 28 Jan 00 | 43% | 44 | 8 | 5 |
| 25 Jun 99 | 42% | 44 | 9 | 5 |
| 9 Jan 98 | 49% | 46 | -- | 5 |
| 22 Aug 97 | 50% | 46 | 5 | 5 |
20. For you personally, is the core issue of the abortion debate:
| A woman's right to choose | 49% |
| A baby's right to life | 40% |
| (Not sure) | 11% |
21. Which football team will you be cheering for during this Sunday's Super Bowl?
| The New York Giants | 34% |
| The Baltimore Ravens | 23% |
| (Not sure) | 13% |
| (Neither) | 30% |
22. Which team do you think will actually win?
| The New York Giants | 37% |
| The Baltimore Ravens | 25% |
| (Not sure) | 17% |
| (Don't care/Don't follow football) | 21% |
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