CNN Poll: 53% who watched speech give president thumbs up - KYTX CBS 19 Tyler Longview News Weather Sports
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By Paul Steinhauser
CNN Political Editor
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- A majority of Americans who watched President Barack Obama's State of the Union address said they had a very positive reaction to his speech, according to a survey of people across the country who viewed Tuesday night's address.
A CNN/ORC International poll indicated that 53% of speech watchers had a very positive reaction, with 24% saying they had a somewhat positive response and 22% with a negative response.
"Tuesday night's State of the Union audience is more Democratic than the nation as a whole, which is typical for a President Obama speech and indicates that the speech-watchers were predisposed to like what Obama said," noted CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. "When George W. Bush was president, his audiences were more Republican than the general public at that time, and his speeches were usually well-received for that same reason."
The CNN Poll was conducted by ORC International after Obama's address, with 393 adult Americans who watched the speech. The survey's sampling error is plus or minus 5 percentage points.
The sample of speech-watchers in the poll were 44% Democratic and 17% Republican. Those numbers indicate that the sample is about 12 points more Democratic than the population as a whole.
"The poll does not and cannot reflect the views of all Americans. It only represents the views of people who watched the speech," added Holland.
The 53% who indicated they had a very positive response is up one point from the 52% of speech watchers who felt the same way two years ago about the president's 2011 State of the Union address. Forty-eight percent of speech watchers felt the same way about the president's 2010 State of the Union address. No CNN/ORC poll was taken after Obama's 2012 State of the Union address because it was held during the presidential campaign season.
According to the new survey, 71% of speech watchers said the president's policies will move the country in the right direction, with 26% saying Obama's polices will take the nation in the wrong direction. The 71% of speech watchers who said the president's polices will move the country in the right direction is up six points from before the speech.
