Pelosi's popularity takes a hit

A new poll of about 2,000 California residents reports that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's standing in her homestate is headed in the wrong direction: her approval rating has fallen 13 percentage points since March, to 39% from 52%.

That finding, in the new survey by the Public Policy Institute of California, is of a piece with attitudes toward Congress in general in the state; 33% give the gang on Capitol Hill positive ratings, down 9 percentage points since the Democrats took control in January. And 68% say they don't expect the Democrats and President Bush will be able to work effectively to accomplish much this year.

The public's view of Congress traditionally polls low, even in the best of times. Still, the trend-line isn't one Pelosi and her fellow Democratic leaders in Washington can find comforting.

Closer to home, Californians aren't all that optimistic about the Democratic state Legislature and GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger becoming a juggernaut for progress, either --- 49% think they might be able to work well together, down from 62% in January.

Bush's ratings, in one of the bluest of blue states, remain dismal: 68% of Californians disapprove of the job he is doing, only 28% approve.  And the partisan gap in views about him is not as wide as might be expected, pollster Mark Baldassare notes.  While a majority of Republicans (56%) approve of his job performance, the share who disapprove --- 40% --- is the highest recorded by the poll.  Among Democrats and independents, disapproval is overwhelming --- 88% and 76%, respectively.

Immigration tops the list, easily, of the most pressing issues facing the state. It was picked by 25% of those polled, followed by the economy (11%) and health care (9%).

The survey's findings on aspects of the controversial immigration bill that stalled Thursday morning in a crucial Senate vote is in line with several national polls --- including one recently conducted by The Times and the Bloomberg News Service. And the results continue to indicate that the intensity of opposition to the bill is not matched by sheer numbers.

Fully 74% of the Californians say illegal immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for more than two years should be allowed to keep their jobs and apply for legal status. When the sample was reduced to likely voters (983 interviewed), support for this proposition remained high: 65%.

-- Don Frederick & Scott Martelle

Photo:  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Credit: Susan Walsh/AP

Comments

[Sonny Johnson]

I live in Wisconsin but am seriously thinking about moving to Sacramento to help vote Nancy Pelosi out of office.
Tough talk, no action. Spineless, no guts Democratic rhetoric.
What happened to the slogan (Mr. President, there's a new congress in town) or something to that effect.
Bah, humbug!

[DJH]

it's nice to know that McCarthyesque tactics are alive and well in Wisconsin long after Joe passed on.

It would be better if geogrpahy and civics were more highly valued than mineless rhetoric like this. Pelosi is a U.S.. House member who represents San Francisco in Washington D.C.

Moving to Sacto to help vote her out is like moving to Chicago to watch the Packers.

[Al Bundy Jr.]

Does it surprise any of you that Pelosi is as ineffective. She, and congress are the equivalent of a chihuahua that barks alot but does nothing meaningful. That is the problem with 2 party system. People are conned into thinking that change is going to happen.

[Mike]

well, if she had more than a marginal majority in the House you might see more sweeping changes, but political reality suggests otherwise....

[Richard]

Nancy Pelosi is a monkey that is self obsessed.

[Tom Fulkrum]

Once again America wants instant solutions to long term problems.
Ms. Pelosi has inherited a congress full of partisan nonsense
and we expect her to get alot done alone. Maybe if WE started writng
our lame congress reps maybe we could stuff done..
Or we could sit back and decide "Its not MY government" its somebody elses fault, like
congress woman Pelosi! Get off your butt call someone send a letter.

[Bill Rodriguez]

She was elected on a platform of hate by people who hate God and America.

[N.]

Go ahead, move to Sacramento. Fat lot of good that'll do you, since she represents San Francisco.

[Spencer Windes]

Dear Sonny,
On behalf of all Californians, I would love to cordially invite you to move to Sacramento for the opportunity to vote for the gentlewoman from San Francisco. Next, you could move to Ecuador and help re-elect President George Bush.
I thought we'd made it easy for y'all to remember, what with the whole "sanfranciscoliberal" tag. Now we know who answers those public opinion polls that show how Americans can't find their own posterior on a map.
Cheers from Los Angeles. That's a city out on the west coast. The one on your left. No, your other left.

[shahin]

Nancy Pelosi is a socialist that has to move to Europe like the rest of her gang in Washington. She is a sham for us in Los Angeles. She wants to make this country look like France or England with her running the healthcare system and other Big government program that these Liberals have in mind. Please vote her out of office.

[Gerald J. Miller]

In addition to relearning geography (Nancy Pelosi represents San Francisco, not Sacramento), Mr. Johnson needs to take a remedial course in math, since there are limits to what she can do with a razor-thin Democratic majority. The present Congress calls to mind the Hippocratic oath: "first, do no harm."

[JeffB]

Bill Rodriguez: "She was elected on a platform of hate by people who hate God and America."

She hates babies and puppies, too. And if you look closely enough, you'll see the tips of her horns poking through her hair.

[Mike]

If you do move to Sacramento, you could help vote out Rep. Doolittle. That is, unless he is indicted before then.

[Cade]

Pelosi is a train-wreck of a House Speaker. We can only pray the GOP takes back the house in 08.

[Charlie Peters]

Does corn ethanol policy for California gas increase oil profit and use?

Clean Air Performance Professionals

[Jeffrey Wade]

Sonny... if only all you hot heads in MN and WI actually lived up to your last vow to move to Canada after Bush's re-election; we would not have to listen to your whining today. "Seriously thinking" about moving to Sacramento?... have you seen the cost-of-living increase you would incur? I'd "seriously" suggest you stick to the cheese-making and beer drinking and not worry about national politics... or maybe actually move to Canada.

[Paul the American]

Wasn't nancy supposed to create a more transparent government and put an end to secret earmarks? The republicans may have been getting carried away with pork spending but the democrats have picked up right where they left off. Nancy has done NOTHING about exposing which earmarks belong to which representative.

[Charlie Peters]

How about improving the system we have?
Ask for a fuel ethanol waiver allowed in the 2005 energy bill .Fuel ethanol uses lots of water

Audit "Smog Check" to fix the fault in more of the failed cars Chief Sherry Mehl, DCA/BAR, has never found out if what is broken on a Smog Check failed car gets fixed, never
Improving Smog Check and fuel policy can cut car impact in half in 1 year and save money About $20 billion in savings in first year I'm confused about promoting products from offshore rather than improving our system
Clean Air Performance Professionals

[Jason]

Sure our friend from WI may not be a genius but at least he got the right state. Our friend DJH might check out the fact that the Packers play in a dif. state than IL, where Chicago is. At lesat Sac. is in the same state as SF. Another thing. He may not be super smart on geography but he's dead on with politics. Pelosi has done very little,numbers or not, for the good of the America people. Sure the folks in gayville might like her,as well as Del Monte, but the rest of us are sick and tired of her politics as usual (just like we were of the Republicans).

[Charlie Peters]

”Unlike MTBE, little is known about the impacts of ethanol releases into groundwater or the environment. However, because ethanol is the primary ingredient of beverage alcohol, which is classified by the California Proposition 65 Committee and other cancer experts as a human carcinogen, many are concerned about the possibility that ethanol may pose a cancer risk. Additionally, independent researchers have determined that ethanol in groundwater can extend plumes of other more potent gasoline carcinogens (benzene, toluene, etc.) up to 25%. In addition, ethanol is less effective than MTBE at fighting air pollution, and due to transportation and supply problems, will likely increase gasoline prices.”

Stella Sez, Hemmings Motor News, July 2000

http://clubs.hemmings.com/clubsites/capp/july.html