Poll: Public pleased with post-election Obama

More than a month after his November victory, President-elect Barack Obama is enjoying a larger post-election honeymoon with the American public than his recent predecessors did, according to the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll.
Two out of three respondents say they’re pleased with Obama’s early appointments and three-fourths believe that the level of his involvement in making policy has been exactly right.
Another two-thirds view the president-elect in a positive light — a rating that's more favorable than the numbers Bill Clinton and George W. Bush received 1992 and 2000.
These scores, combined with the fact that nearly 80 percent believe Obama will face bigger challenges than other recent presidents have, seem to have given the president-elect some early leeway with Americans, says Republican pollster Bill McInturff, who conducted this survey with Democratic pollster Peter Hart.
“Compared to Bill Clinton in ’93 or Bush in ’01, we’re seeing a president who has been given a longer leash by the American public,” McInturff said. “This is not a traditional start of a presidency where people give you just a couple of months.”

Great expectations
What’s more, overwhelming majorities believe it’s likely that Obama will accomplish some of the goals set forth in his campaign.

Some examples:

* 80 percent say it’s likely he’ll improve American’s image around the world.
* 73 percent say it’s likely he’ll put the economy back on track.
* 70 percent say it’s likely that he’ll pull most U.S. troops out of Iraq within the next 16 months.
* 61 percent say he’ll reduce taxes for the middle class.

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