In the past he’s sublimated any honest assessment of public opinion which has at times fueled his own resentment acted out in a variety of destructive and even self-destructive ways.

We’ve seen strains of cultural resentment that arose from the Vietnam war passed down generation to generation by those who apparently feel intense personal shame regarding anything less than complete and total victory and equally complete destruction of anyone deemed the enemy.

It is significant that the 26% of the electorate still approving of Bush is the approximate % that psychologists estimate authoritarian followers to exist in populations of any given culture.

I would not expect any of the effects being discussed here to disappear nor would I expect that 51% will not occasionally fall in line with the 26%, particularly during times of duress.

It is my opinion that Bush’s biggest appeal in 2000 was not that he was the “guy you’d rather have a beer with,” but that many voters sensed that there was no chance he would ever do or say anything that would challenge their beliefs–that, in fact, he would stubbornly affirm the sky was green to the bitter end. I don’t intend this as a blanket indictment; certainly it’s possible to name some intelligent, thoughtful conservatives in the public sphere. However, it generally takes a few minutes of thought to come up with the names.

Best to put your hopes on something more likely.

Goooo Obama!

I’m putting my hopes on Laura rejecting this worm at some point.

My recollection as well. If you wanted smart, you watched Dick Cavett.

The Wall Street Journal is running a poll this morning that says Obama is picking up support from a wide range of people, including mnay former McCain supporters.

Overall, a majority of Americans are confident in Mr. Obama’s ability to govern and unify the country, with many who didn’t vote for him now seeing him in a positive light. The poll found that 73% of adults approve of the way he is handling the transition and his preparations for becoming president.

Apparently, there is more unity behind Obama than there was behind Clinton in 1992 or Bush in 2000.

Of course, those surveyed also agree that Obama faces bigger problems than either of the former two presidents and his actions will be watched with close scrutiny.

The article continues:

Similarly, three of four say he has struck the right balance over how involved he should be in making policy before taking office. Two-thirds say they are generally pleased with the people he has appointed.

The mood will give Mr. Obama a longer-than-typical honeymoon, predicted Peter D. Hart, a Democratic pollster who conducts the survey with Republican Bill McInturff.

“All these expectations are sort of sky high prior to his inauguration,” Mr. Hart said. “From that vantage point, he has a very long leash.”

Realize that over half of those polled feel that 2008 has been the worst year in our recent economic history and this effects the support that is being given Obama by 3 out of 4 Americans.

And how did the survey respondents feel about Bush?

The survey also offers a final report card on Mr. Bush, who leaves office with near-record-low popularity. Just 18% say they are going to miss him when he is gone, half the number Mr. Clinton recorded on his way out of office. Asked to compare Mr. Bush with the past several presidents, half of those surveyed said he will go down as worse than most.

I wonder if those who will miss him fall into the range of the top 1% of our economic population. My guess is that they are the ones who would like the last eight years to continue forever.

Under The LobsterScope

Oh, he also liberated 4200+ Americans from the burden of living.