OBAMA'S APPROVAL RATINGS IN FREE FALL

A new CNN poll provides the sharpest evidence yet that a month of scandals (IRS, Benghazi, AP, leaks, etc.) is taking its toll on Obama's approval rating.

The president's approval rating stands at 45%, down from 53% in mid-May. And 54% say they disapprove of how Obama's handling his job, up nine points from last month. It's the first time in CNN polling since November 2011 that a majority of Americans have had a negative view of the president.

"The drop in Obama's support is fueled by a dramatic 17-point decline over the past month among people under 30, who, along with black Americans, had been the most loyal part of the Obama coalition," says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.

The president also dropped 10 points among independent voters, from 47% last month to 37% now, with Obama's disapproval among independents jumping 12 points to 61%.

The full pdf of the data is here.

The data indicates that 60% disapprove of how Obama is handling government surveillance of U.S. citizens, which is higher than the 52% who disapproved of George W. Bush on the same issue in 2006, when government surveillance was also in the headlines.

Obama's lack of character, finally, is beginning to be recognized and penalized.  The number of Americans who think he is honest has plummeted nine points over the past month, to 49%. Fifty-seven percent of those questioned say they disagree with the president's views on the size and power of the federal government, and 53% say he cannot manage the government effectively.

Everybody knows that Obama had it easy when he came into office in terms of repudiating Bush's ideas (he was given a Nobel peace prize simply for not being Bush), but he had much bigger ambitions than that. He has dedicated much of his rhetorical firepower to debunking the message of the Reagan presidency - that government is too big, and that big government often creates bigger problems than it solves. 

This poll suggests that the abuse of power and multiple failures of the Obama regime are providing confirmation that Reagan was right all along.