CBS NEWS POLL

For release: January 25th, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Reaction to the 2011 State of the Union:

Approval of Economic Plans, Optimism for Bipartisanship
January 25th, 2011

A CBS News Poll of Americans who watched President Obama’s State of the Union speech,
conducted online by Knowledge Networks immediately after the address, finds viewers
generally positive about the economic proposals he laid out in the speech and optimistic about
the prospects for bipartisanship in Congress.

Overall, 91% of speech watchers approve of the proposals the President made in his speech.
Just 9% disapprove – typical of the high support a president generally receives among those
who choose to watch the State of the Union. Last year, 83% of viewers approved of President
Obama’s plans at the time.

Proposals in the speech

(Among speech viewers)
Approve 91%
Disapprove 9

As is often the case, those who watched the speech were more likely to be from the President’s
party.

After the speech, there were also significant increases in approval of the President’s plans in a
number of specific areas. On his plans for the economy, just 53% of speech watchers approved
before the speech; that rose to 82% after the speech. There were similar increases in approval
of his plans for the deficit and Afghanistan.

Approval of Obama’s Plans for…

After Before
The economy 82% 53%
The deficit 80% 45%
Afghanistan 83% 57%

The sight of Democrats and Republicans sitting side by side gave speech watchers confidence
about cooperation: 62% say they expect more bipartisanship now than in years past.

Expect Congressional Democrats and Republicans to Work Together More Now?

Yes 62%
No 38

In his speech, the President mentioned limiting federal spending. 56% of speech watchers think
his economic plans will reduce government spending; 43% are not convinced.
 Will Obama’s Plans Reduce Spending?
(Among speech viewers)
Yes 56%
No 43

But President Obama had more success convincing viewers that his economic plans would
make the U.S. competitive, and lead to jobs.

75% of speech watchers think the President’s plans would make America more competitive in
the world economy.

Will Obama’s Plans Make U.S. Economy More Competitive?

(Among speech viewers)
Yes 75%
No 24

He also convinced more speech watchers that his economic plans would create jobs: after the
speech, 75% think his economic plans will create jobs, up from 55% before the speech.

Will Obama’s Plans Create Jobs?

(Among speech viewers)
After Before
Yes 75% 55%
No

President Obama defended the new health care law, but that did not substantially boost
approval of the bill among speech watchers.

Views of Health Care Bill

After Before
Approve 65% 56%
Disapprove

Americans who watched the speech are more Democratic than the nation as a whole.
That is not surprising; historically, a President’s supporters are more likely than his
opponents to watch State of the Union addresses. 44% of speech viewers in this poll
are Democrat and 25% are Republican. In the most recent CBS News/NY Times poll of
all Americans, conducted , the breakdown is more even between the parties: 34%
Democrat and 27% Republican.

Speech Viewers And Americans’ Party Affiliation

Viewers All Americans
Democrat 44% 34%
Republican 25 27
Independent 31 39

_____________________________________________________________________________________
This CBS News Poll was conducted online by Knowledge Networks among a nationwide random sample of
659 viewers of the President’s State of the Union Address. Knowledge Networks, a Silicon Valley company,
conducted the poll among a sample of adult members of its household panel who said in recent days that
they intended to watch the speech. The Knowledge Networks panel is a nationally representative sample
given access to the Internet. This is a scientifically representative poll of viewers’ reaction to the speech. The
margin of sampling error could be plus or minus 4 percentage points for the entire sample of speech
watchers.
CBS NEWS POLL
State of the Union
January 25, 2011

Q2. In general, do you approve or disapprove of the proposals the President made in his
speech tonight?

** SPEECH WATCHERS **
Approve 91%
Disapprove 9

Q4. From what you have seen or heard, do you generally approve or disapprove of Barack
Obama’s plans for dealing with …

Before After

The federal budget deficit?

Approve 45% 80%
Disapprove 55 20

Afghanistan?
Approve 57% 83%
Disapprove 42 16

The economy?
Approve 53% 82%
Disapprove 46 18

Q5. Regardless of what you hope will happen, do you think Barack Obama’s economic
plans…

Before After

Will reduce government spending?

Yes n/a 56%
No n/a 43
Will create jobs?
Yes 55% 75%
No 45 25

Will make the U.S. more competitive in the world?

Yes n/a 75%
No n/a 24

Q5a. From what you've heard or read, how do you feel about the new health care law that
was passed last year? Do you…

Before After
Strongly approve 18% 25%
Somewhat approve 38 40
Somewhat disapprove 19 19
Strongly disapprove 25 16
Q7. Do you think Congressional Republicans and Democrats will work together more this
year than they have in the recent past, or not?

** SPEECH WATCHERS **
Yes 62%
No 38

Q8. Generally speaking, do you usually consider yourself a:

Speech Watchers All Americans (CBS/NYT Poll)

Republican 25% 27%
Democrat 44 34
Independent/Other 31 39

*Note: Some numbers do not add to 100% due to rounding

Total Speech Watchers: 659

Margin of error: 4 pts