So … maybe next time treat Salon with a healthier dose of skepticism?
Trump & Co gleefully tout Rasmussen every time it bounces somewhat slightly higher than normal. Not really gonna blame Salon for quoting a poll that 538 rates as A+ vs Rasmusseun’s C+.
I think I know a pretty good cross-section of liberals, and I don’t remember anybody gleefully hoping that Obama would piss off conservatives in general after the 2008 election. A few of them were gleefully hoping he’d piss off racists, but that’s not the same thing. Mostly, we hoped – naively, perhaps, but sincerely – that he would govern well enough to win over conservatives, which would necessarily involve doing some stuff that conservatives would actually like.
+1
Ahhh, the delicious what-aboutisms.
I agree, and let me say this, as I am myself a disaffected liberal who’s annoyed at the fracturing of my party by identity politics and its failure to connect with crucial voting blocs:
“Pissing off liberals” was always something conservatives wanted to do (and I think liberals also wanted to piss off conservatives) - but now, because of social media and the internet, they have real-time feedback in doing so. That’s a game-changer IMO. It also means that every time liberals do something stupid, like protest “food appropriation” or try to change the name of the city of Austin - even if it’s just a tiny group of radicals who in no way speak for the Democratic party or the concept of liberalism at large - it immediately gets picked up and becomes a huge story and punching bag for conservatives, and winds up reflecting back on all liberals in a way that it did not before.
The same is true of the worst excesses of right-wing radicals, by the way. I’m in no way implying that this is exclusive to the left.
The “politics of resentment” that I speak of, are fueled in large part by the fact that the internet, by its nature, exaggerates the worst elements on both sides and also provides platforms for people to bash their opponents with comments and have their opinions immediately affirmed by like-minded people.
The idea of being a moderate, is definitely hurt by this phenomenon.
You’re the one who claimed cherry picking. Meanwhile Trump has cited poll results that don’t even exist.
You would be wrong. That’s whataboutism. Liberals want progress, toward a better society for all of us. That does happen to piss off conservatives but it isn’t the purpose.
Dude. Listen to yourself. You’re stoutly defending your guy’s historic unpopularity by saying it’s actually a full four percent less putrid in another poll.
Maybe some deeper consideration of the reasons would be in order?
down to 36% approval , 60% disapprove. 53% strongly disapprove
The crazification factor is only 27%, although it might have changed since the last campaign season. Who are the other 9%?
Maaaybe if he actually gave Putin a blow job and let Vlad pee on his face during a press conference…
…Nah. They’d say it was a hologram from Hilary’s secret lair.
I’m fighting ignorance. The ignorance Salon & you perpetuated with your misleading “record high” headline & post.
Looking at single polls when their results suddenly pop up or down (regardless of how you feel about their possible partisan lean) always has the potential to be problematic. Yes, maybe it’s the first sign of a change…but barring a news event that’s clearly driving the change, the odds that it’s just statistical noise are pretty high.
FiveThirtyEight’s model of Trump’s approval rating, based on multiple polls (weighted for their reliability and taking into account any partisan lean) has been pretty much unchanged since early May, at around 52% “disapprove,” 42% “approve.” And, actually, it’s been pretty close to those numbers since soon after his inauguration.
Yes, but that’s so boring. There’s no “record high” headline to hype if we don’t cherry pick individual polls.
True. But, speaking as a career market researcher, I’ll take “much more likely to be accurate” over “exciting.” 
I agree. I was just being facetious. I thought your post was spot on.
I think you are misunderstanding the claim. ABC News/Washington Post has polled presidential approval every few months for the entirety of Trump’s time in office. Around eight times total is what I come up with from a quick glance at RCP. 60% disapproval is indeed the highest disapproval ever reported by that poll.
There is nothing at all inaccurate about this headline from ABC: Trouble for Trump: Disapproval at a high, 63% back Mueller, half favor impeachment. ABC has no obligation to rely on or report 538’s polling aggregate. They are using their own data and there’s nothing dishonest about that.
The Salon reporting is a little more problematic, but I think it’s more likely that the folks at Salon read the ABC and just reported what ABC claimed without examining precisely what ABC was claiming.
All that said, almost any story focusing on a single poll is going to overstate something or other, but this is due to news people not understanding statistics, not dishonesty.
I strongly suspected. No worries!
And don’t forget to add 8 or 12 points to whatever number the pollsters come up with.