Global approval of American leadership spiked immediately after President Obama replaced President Bush and then began a slow and steady drop throughout the remainder of Obama’s first term.
However, the new Gallup numbers are in for 2013, and they show that the downward trajectory reversed itself in 2013.
It’s not easy to understand the improvement, as last year was a difficult one for the United States, with the Syrian situation causing a lot of angst and the Snowden revelations damaging foreign relations with countries from Russia to Germany to Brazil.
One thing that did change was our Secretary of State, and maybe John Kerry is doing an exceptional job. But I kind of doubt he’s more popular on the world stage than Hillary Clinton.
What else could explain the improvement?
Also, the chart is pretty clear evidence that the Obama administration has done a decent job of improving America’s image abroad, which is something that the right simply doesn’t want to acknowledge.
Yes, it is interesting that in Gallup’s commentary they somehow neglected to mention that even at the lowest point under Obama, it was still significantly higher than under the previous administration. I’m just surprised they even showed that on their chart.
I noticed during the BP oil spill that European news was much more factual than US. They have been recognizing the good that President Obama is doing while he often has to take his message on the road giving speeches or talking to local media to be heard here in the US.
What I’ve read is that Europeans have appreciated his thoughtful, international consensus gathering leadership in a crisis. I’m not saying at all that he doesn’t get criticism. I’m saying there is more of a recognition that we can’t just run in and bomb everyone whenever there is a situation we disagree with. I certainly appreciate it.
One thing about the oligarchs is that they have created a global structure of sorts that is more open to solutions like the Russian sanctions of Putin’s cronies and bank.
The GOP live in such a very strange little world in their heads. Gallup should do a survey of how the Romney presidency is perceived. I’d bet that people in the US would give it ratings.
I think NOT going into Syria probably resonated well with people who were used to America just saying, “Fuck it, bombs away.”
Also, are there any other international figures covering themselves in glory? Merkel? Cameron? Putin?
I agree. I think the rest of the world sees and hears the US – Bomb Syria, Bomb Iran, Bomb Russia crowd and appreciates that a rational human being is the leader of our great nation.
Here’s your answer.
Polls lie.
Big corporate polls lie even more.
They are part and parcel of the fix, and they are also as incompetent as most of the rest of the corporate world. Do you really believe said by Fox News, MSNBC and CNN, for example? I hope not. Then why swallow polls like this one?
WTFU.
It is all part of the hustle.
Why build up the Obama administration? That’s the $64 trillion question to be asking!
Fix Central is the only place to get those kinds of answers. I tried calling them and I got a voice message.
Oh.
Believe nothing told to you by the Corporate/PermaGov alliance.
Nothing.
AG
You have a great command of white space in your posts. It’s the stuff in between that doesn’t quite hold up 🙂
You take polls at face value and tell me that my stuff doesn’t hold up?
AG
The key deficiency of libertarian ideology is its total rejection of evidence of any kind. Polls do have a scientific basis – some better than others – but most reputable polls are actually quite good at recognizing trends more than anything else. But of course the libertarian will claim conspiracy without judging the source, or offering an alternative. The weakness of this position cannot be understated. It makes it impossible to navigate the world and have any idea what we are looking at.
In any case, the “stuff” referred to the comment above is just an opinion not based in any sort of evidence. The poll provided in the post is a form of evidence, which can be judged on its own merits. It is, in other words, more than zero. What evidence do you have that America’s position in the world has gone down? This isn’t, by the way, an endorsement of any philosophy – we’re just talking about whether people generally like or dislike the US, which can mean a lot of things. Anyone who’s traveled abroad since Bush knows that it’s a lot easier to be an American outside of America these days, with a handful of exceptions.
Where have you traveled abroad during that time, exactly?
Me?
Egypt, Russia, Venezuela, Scandinavia, Morocco, Holland, France, Spain, Canada. Travel in and among the people as a performing musician playing people’s music not doing the tourist or high glitz rock/pop thing. Canadians and Scandinavians are too polite to engage in bad looks, but the rest? Easier since Bush? It was until people began to see the real moves behind Obama’s fancy rhetoric.
Evidence? The evidence of watching 50+ years of carefully contrived polls pushing national opinion towards the center ground…always towards the center ground…that is owned and controlled by the corporate control system.
First of all, “polls” DO NOT POLL in any sort of true, inclusive, democratic manner. Demographics that are less poor are massively favored. Big time. Go into what’s left of Black and Spanish NYC and take your own poll on the street corner. Ask this. “Have you ever been polled by a major polling company and if you were polled, did you cooperate?” I live there, cruzy, and most of my friends, colleagues and those who most influenced me came up in ghettos of various kinds. I know what that poll will say from literally thousands of conversations over the years.
It will basically say…if you are hip enough to look like you might be trustworthy, of course…
Bet on it.
The biggest…and least accurate…poll of all in the U.S. is the census poll. For any number of reasons ghetto people often don’t even answer the door unless they know damned well who is knocking and why, and if they are polled by a census taker they are most often not going to tell the truth because of fear of reprisal from the government. Too many people in an apartment, names that might be on a fed list, reflexive (and quite justified) fear of any sort of white officialdom…the list of valid reasons is endess.
So…this particular “poll” Do you really think that the Gallup pollsters went into tough neighborhoods (or even called those neighborhoods, most of the phones in which are either unlisted or illegal) in South/Central/Caribbean America, most of Africa or the tougher…read “of color”…neighborhoods in Western Europe? Did they poll an equal number of Musilms as Christians? How was the polling done in N. Korea and China, Pakistan, Afghanistan and the whole of what Gary Shteyngart called “Absurdistan” in one of the great comic novels of the last 100 years?
What’re you!!!??? Kiddin’ me or what?
Wake the fuck up.
You believe that, I got a bridge to sell you over the East River. Give me some time and sufficient money and I could get a poll that said it’s alright to sell it, too.
WTFU
AG
It probably reflects the growing middle classes in China – who are not particularly anti-American from everything I’ve heard – along with some improvements in Latin America (and less US intervention there) and the rise of Russia as an antagonist.
When Russia was not threatening too much outside its borders, it was easier to focus on the negatives on the US, the other of the three ten million pound nation-gorillas (China, Russia, US). But over the last 2 years in particular – even before the Crimea situation – Russia was starting to get a bit more obnoxious on the world stage. Human rights violations got in the news, Putin’s profile rose again (and he’s not a charmer), and the Olympics, despite going off rather flawlessly, still exposed quite clearly the harsh, authoritarian nature of Putin’s rule.
I don’t know if this poll was taken after the Crimean invasion occurred, but if so that had to have an impact. Most people in the world are not pro-war, unlike American righties, and would probably have sympathized with how we responded – by not blowing anything up.
When I was in Chile recently, the US State Dept made that country the first Latin American country to get full Visa Waiver status, as well. Chileans, despite their troubled history at the hands of our CIA, really like Americans quite a bit, and that probably pushed them further in our direction. Venezuelans are souring on Maduro for obvious reasons, making his anti-American propaganda less appealing. Argentina is slowly recovering and is desperate for American tourists and traders, Brazil is now mad at itself over lavish soccer stadiums instead of us (a few years ago, we slapped visa requirements on them that they really didn’t like. It was big news. that’s fading.).
And Obama spent time as a student in Indonesia, another big one that’s probably been at play since the beginning. And Obama is ragingly popular in parts of Africa.
It’s a multitude of factors, but doesn’t surprise me we’d be looking better right now. It all adds up.
On China not true.
○ U.S. affirms support for Japan in islands dispute with China
I believe what was meant was Chinese view of America not Americans view of China
“Also, the chart is pretty clear evidence that the Obama administration has done a decent job of improving America’s image abroad, which is something that the right simply doesn’t want to acknowledge. “
Why acknowledge it as they don’t care what other countries think of us. In a lot of cases, they would just as soon tick off the other countries much like they live to tick off liberals.
The idea of a global poll raises the question about what exactly the question that Gallup uses actually means to the people who responded. It is really vaguely worded.
That said, my reading is that backing away from war in Syria and opening dialog with Iran moved opinion in a positive direction and that the poll was taken before the Ukraine fiasco.
I don’t know the specifics of the poll, and let’s face it, Gallup is pretty damned unreliable overall, but what with all the warmongering coming out of Washington, DC and no real blood to show for it, I suspect maybe that people around the world see a little distance between Obama and the permanent government. I mean, the US wanted to bomb Syria but Obama didn’t.
Also, his battle for healthcare for Americans helps to differentiate himself from his GOP alternatives.
Why did Obama’s approval rating drop 5 points in 2012 and gain the same in 2013? Both are remarkable step functions. Perhaps a global relief the US voters didn’t elect Mitt Romney in November 2012? Pffew.
The countries with a majority of Islam have an effect, due to the Arab Spring many countries can be found to criticize the US. I understand the continuation of drone strikes has a negative effect. As personality, Hillary Clinton gained high marks world-wide. It’s about image, not based on facts. Secretary Kerry has done an outstanding and inspiring job, however nothing to show for it as a result: Libya, Egypt, Israel, Syria, Iraq, Iran Pakistan, Afghanistan and now the Ukraine. My optimism of one year ago has turned negative as the antagonism and confrontation has increased to uneasy levels.
Before this year, Obama’s approval ratings greatly increased in Russia [+8%!] and Japan.
Analysis of underlying evidence is often very complex and should be looked at on a country level. I found this graph interesting …
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