Posted on 12/22/2005 7:14:40 PM PST by DeusExMachina05
Baldacci rating among lowest in U.S. Thursday, December 22, 2005 - Bangor Daily News << Back
AUGUSTA - Gov. John E. Baldacci's favorability rating continued to trend downward this week in a poll that ranked the Democratic politician 44th nationally in terms of voter approval.
In fact, the SurveyUSA poll compiled numbers that placed Baldacci's favorability rating below President Bush and only slightly above embattled Republican California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Kathleen Blanco, the Democratic governor of storm-ravaged Louisiana.
Gov. Bob Taft, R-Ohio, placed 50th nationally in the survey with an 80 percent disapproval rating. He was recently convicted on state criminal ethics charges and is now under federal indictment, accused of engaging in illegal fundraising for President Bush.
On the other end of the scale, Republican Gov. Jodi Rell of Connecticut held the highest approval rating at 77 percent, closely followed by the governors of North Dakota and South Dakota.
With 59 percent disapproval and 36 percent approval, Baldacci wound up tying for 44th place with Gov. Matt Blunt, a Missouri Republican who has come under fire for pandering to lobbyists, weakening state worker's compensation laws and drawing lawsuits alleging violations of the state constitution.
Not surprisingly, Baldacci's office was unimpressed Wednesday with the SurveyUSA results and maintained their own polling gave the governor higher numbers.
"We don't feel that this is a credible poll because we don't know who is responding to the computerized questions," said Crystal Canney, the governor's communications director. "I can tell you that in actual meetings with people this week in Hancock and Oxford counties, he's been talking about the Dirigo [health program] and heating [fuel shortages]. He's just received an incredible response. If we were going to take anecdotal stuff and create a poll out of it based on those meetings, I would give him [an approval] rating of 95 to 100."
The poll was conducted between Dec. 9 and Dec. 11 and surveyed 600 adults statewide. It carried a reported margin of error of 4 percent.
The SurveyUSA poll has its share of critics who maintain the poll's methodology of relying on computer-programmed questions delivered through random telephone interviews undermines the survey's credibility.
But Survey USA counters that its polling is more than a snapshot in time and one independent analysis of the company places it among the most accurate surveyors in the country.
In 2004, Polipundit.com gave SurveyUSA a No. 1 ranking for predicting the correct outcome in 29 of 30 states. The company's services have been used in the past by the Bangor Daily News, WCSH-TV6 in Portland and WLBZ-TV2 in Bangor.
The most recent SurveyUSA poll shows Baldacci breaking the trend that kept him in the mid-50s level of approval since May by pushing him closer to the 60 percent mark.
In November, the same polling company had Baldacci at 40 percent approval, 57 percent disapproval and 3 percent unsure. Those numbers moved this month to 36 percent approval, 59 percent disapproval and about 5 percent unsure.
Other interesting aspects of the survey showed Baldacci with higher negatives in northern Maine, a region he once represented as a 2nd Congressional District congressman.
The survey also showed a significant movement among Maine's large independent or unenrolled voter block with 62 percent disapproving of Baldacci's performance. The response amounted to a 7 percent increase in unfavorability in little more than a month.
Republicans were quick to seize upon the survey's conclusion saying the results reflected a trend that would continue through next year when Mainers go to the polls to choose a governor.
"This is simply a reaction to economic issues, the rising cost of health care, and quite frankly [Baldacci's] inability to deliver on real income and property tax reductions," said Mike Leavitt, executive director of the Maine Republican Party. "He's failed to lead on those issues which are on the minds of Maine people."
Pat Colwell, chairman of the Maine Democratic Party, argued many governors across the country had actually dipped in approval over the last several months - regardless of their political affiliation.
"I think that when you look at that, you've got to say that it's the policies of the Bush administration and the lack of help from Washington back to the states - in effect the broken promises to the states - that is bringing a lot of tough decisions back to the sitting governors and their legislatures," Colwell said. "So I guess I'm not surprised that sitting governors' numbers might be down."
MaryEllen FitzGerald of Critical Insights polling in Portland said the SurveyUSA poll reinforced surveys taken by her firm reflecting low favorability ratings she had documented in earlier Baldacci polls.
Still, FitzGerald emphasized no one should place too much emphasis on polls that attempt to determine approval or disapproval.
"Favorability can change pretty quickly and this is a tough time for the state," she said. "When you're the governor, you take a lot of the heat."
Information on the poll is on the Web at www.surveyusa.com.
Nah, he got a slap on the wrist by the court. Plea-bargained & got probation and a fine. I had hoped the worthless country club elitist scumbag would step down in order to let everyone forget about this by election '06-but, of course, he refused to do so.
I hope to hell he does-the absolute WORST governor we've EVER had, regardless of party affiliation.
Heh, don't blame me, I left the state just before turning 18, so I never voted for Taft.
Although I have only voted for ONE Dem since '94 (the choice was between 2 Dems for Mayor recently-had to go with the one that was pro-small business), I've NEVER voted for Taft, DeWhine, or RHINOvich. For ANY position. I knew years ago what they were. Went Independent or Libertarian rather than them.
Maine has fallen to socialism.
http://jednet207.tripod.com/PoliticalLinks.html
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