# Have scandal monger lies begun to pay off? **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [June 18, 2013, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262 "2013-06-18T11:20:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![NotfooledbyW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f475e1/32.png) [@NotfooledbyW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotfooledbyW)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 11:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/1 "2013-06-18T11:20:40Z")
> [@](#): > > The CNN/ORC International survey released Monday morning comes as the White House has been reacting to controversies over a massive U.S. government surveillance program; the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of tea party and other conservative groups who applied for tax-exempt status; the administration’s handling of last September’s attack in Benghazi that left the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans dead; and the Justice Department’s secret collection of journalists’ phone records as part of a government investigation into classified leaks. > The poll indicates that for the first time in Obama’s presidency, half of the public says they don’t believe he is honest and trustworthy. And Americans are split on the controversial National Security Agency anti-terrorism program to record metadata on U.S. phone calls, but they support the NSA program that targets records of Internet usage by people in other countries. That doesn’t mean they necessarily like what is going on: Just over six in 10 believe that government is so large and powerful that it threatens the rights and freedoms of ordinary Americans. [http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/17/cnn-poll-obama-approval-falls-amid-controversies/](http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/17/cnn-poll-obama-approval-falls-amid-controversies/) ---
**Author:** ![NotfooledbyW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f475e1/32.png) [@NotfooledbyW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotfooledbyW)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/2 "2013-06-18T11:25:29Z")
> [@](#): > > The poll indicates that for the first time in Obama’s presidency, half of the public says they don’t believe he is honest and trustworthy. I see CNN refers to the so-called scandals as controversies. But I would like to know what Obama has done this past month that produced a drop in trust by the public and what he has done that makes anyone think he is less honest than before? ---
**Author:** ![Kearsen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/82dd89/32.png) [@Kearsen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kearsen)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 11:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/3 "2013-06-18T11:27:17Z")
> [@NotfooledbyW](#): > > The CNN/ORC International survey released Monday morning comes as the White House has been reacting to controversies over a massive U.S. government surveillance program; the Internal Revenue Service’s targeting of tea party and other conservative groups who applied for tax-exempt status; the administration’s handling of last September’s attack in Benghazi that left the U.S. ambassador to Libya and three other Americans dead; and the Justice Department’s secret collection of journalists’ phone records as part of a government investigation into classified leaks. > The poll indicates that for the first time in Obama’s presidency, half of the public says they don’t believe he is honest and trustworthy. And Americans are split on the controversial National Security Agency anti-terrorism program to record metadata on U.S. phone calls, but they support the NSA program that targets records of Internet usage by people in other countries. That doesn’t mean they necessarily like what is going on: Just over six in 10 believe that government is so large and powerful that it threatens the rights and freedoms of ordinary Americans. > > [http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/17/cnn-poll-obama-approval-falls-amid-controversies/](http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2013/06/17/cnn-poll-obama-approval-falls-amid-controversies/) No ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 11:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/4 "2013-06-18T11:32:46Z")
Well, there was the IRS thing, followed by the NSA thing. That seems to be the most obvious answer. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/5 "2013-06-18T11:49:51Z")
Isn’t one thread of semantic nonsense about “scandals” enough? ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/6 "2013-06-18T12:32:52Z")
Semantics is a good thing. Its misuse (such as by the OP here) is not. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/7 "2013-06-18T12:36:45Z")
Yes it’s working. People are sheep and the GOP has an effective strategy. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 1:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/8 "2013-06-18T13:15:15Z")
Maybe in this thread, as something different, we could argue about the meanings of ‘scandal monger’ and ‘lies’, as well as ‘pay off’. Wouldn’t want this subject to get stale or anything. > [@](#): > > The poll indicates that for the first time in Obama’s presidency, half of the public says they don’t believe he is honest and trustworthy. And Americans are split on the controversial National Security Agency anti-terrorism program to record metadata on U.S. phone calls, but they support the NSA program that targets records of Internet usage by people in other countries. That doesn’t mean they necessarily like what is going on: Just over six in 10 believe that government is so large and powerful that it threatens the rights and freedoms of ordinary Americans. I skimmed through the article but it doesn’t get very specific about the breakdown as far as I could tell. My WAG is that the real change has been in independents and democrats, who see the NSA thing in particular as a betrayal. They thought that with Bush gone, there would be real, substantial changes to all of that kind of thing, but Obama has kept a lot of the things Bush et al did in place and ticking away, and that’s not making a lot of more left leaning folks very happy atm…and it’s reflected in the polls. That’s my WAG anyway. I don’t think it’s ‘scandal mongers lies’ beginning to ‘pay off’, it’s the lefties becoming increasingly disillusioned by a president who is, after all, a moderate for all that the right wing has attempted to portray him as a communist/socialist. ---
**Author:** ![Human\_Action](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ac91a4/32.png) [@Human\_Action](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Human_Action)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/9 "2013-06-18T13:43:01Z")
If this keeps up, I think there’s a real chance Obama could lose the 2016 election. > [@XT](#): > > I skimmed through the article but it doesn’t get very specific about the breakdown as far as I could tell. My WAG is that the real change has been in independents and democrats, who see the NSA thing in particular as a betrayal. They thought that with Bush gone, there would be real, substantial changes to all of that kind of thing, but Obama has kept a lot of the things Bush et al did in place and ticking away, and that’s not making a lot of more left leaning folks very happy atm…and it’s reflected in the polls. That’s my WAG anyway. I don’t think it’s ‘scandal mongers lies’ beginning to ‘pay off’, it’s the lefties becoming increasingly disillusioned by a president who is, after all, a moderate for all that the right wing has attempted to portray him as a communist/socialist. Seriously, though, this is the answer. Obama’s been in office long enough that the bloom is off the rose, he’s being treated as a politician and not an ideal. This phenomenon has nothing to do with any notions of “Obamessiah” or anything like that, it happens to almost every president. [Gallup](http://www.gallup.com/poll/116677/presidential-approval-ratings-gallup-historical-statistics-trends.aspx) has approval ratings by term for every president since Truman. For the two-termers, comparing average of first term to average of second term: Truman’s dropped by 19.1%. Eisenhower’s dropped by 9.1%. Johnson’s dropped by 23.9%. Nixon’s dropped by 21.4%. Reagan’s rose by 5%. Clinton’s rose by 11%. Bush’s dropped by 25.7%. Conclusion: it’d be unusual for Obama _not_ to suffer a decline in popularity in his second term. Also, Reagan and Clinton are sorely missed. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/10 "2013-06-18T13:47:10Z")
**HA** : Excellent post with actual data. Let’s see what the OP brings to the table. I didn’t see any attempt by the OP to defend his thesis, which I assume is in the title of this thread. ---
**Author:** ![NotfooledbyW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f475e1/32.png) [@NotfooledbyW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotfooledbyW)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/11 "2013-06-18T14:15:25Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > Well, there was the IRS thing, followed by the NSA thing. That seems to be the most obvious answer. I asked about lies about those ‘things’ by RWers like Rep Daryl Issa who released partial testimony that insinuated the targeting came from DC, but withheld the testimony that a Republican Manager in Cinci had admitted that he started the mistake all on his own with one underling. Issa lied by omission with an intent to mislead the public. I have not seen any evidence that Obama has lied it has been dishonest about any of these controversies. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/12 "2013-06-18T14:24:08Z")
> [@NotfooledbyW](#): > > \*\*Have scandal monger lies begun to pay off? \*\* . . . . “Begun”? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/13 "2013-06-18T14:55:56Z")
Meh. My _personal_ view of him has soured slightly over the past month. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/14 "2013-06-18T14:58:56Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Meh. My _personal_ view of him has soured slightly over the past month. Does that count? Yes. What did you expect the payoff to be, instant collapse of the administration? ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/15 "2013-06-18T15:11:32Z")
Moved to Elections from Great Debates. ---
**Author:** ![XT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xt/32/456_2.png) [@XT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/XT)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/16 "2013-06-18T15:14:26Z")
I’d have to say that the odds of Obama being re-elected are pretty slim at this point, but perhaps he’s still got an outside chance… ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/17 "2013-06-18T15:17:24Z")
Mind you, Congress is still clocking in at a 10% approval rating so it’s not like it’s just Obama that’s getting hit at the moment. ---
**Author:** ![DigitalC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ebca7d/32.png) [@DigitalC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DigitalC)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/18 "2013-06-18T15:47:33Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > . . . . “Begun”? Well their made up scandals never seemed to help them before, it actually made the real scandals be taken less seriously. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/19 "2013-06-18T16:15:18Z")
> [@XT](#): > > I don’t think it’s ‘scandal mongers lies’ beginning to ‘pay off’, it’s the lefties becoming increasingly disillusioned by a president who is, after all, a moderate for all that the right wing has attempted to portray him as a communist/socialist. I agree - while the proportion of right-wingers that view Obama as shifty may not have changed, the positive view held by left-wingers has likely been altered by issues like drone strikes, Guantanamo non-closure and the NSA surveillance _ **scandal** _ :D, reflecting behavior they’d expect from GWB but feel betrayed by coming from Obama. ---
**Author:** ![NotfooledbyW](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f475e1/32.png) [@NotfooledbyW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NotfooledbyW)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2013, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262/20 "2013-06-18T16:26:27Z")
> [@Kearsen](#): > > No Why not? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/have-scandal-monger-lies-begun-to-pay-off/661262.md?page=2)