The Political Environment Presidents also have to consider their own standing or support in the public when considering going public. Popular presidents will enjoy a public that is open to their appeals and agenda, while presidents with low public approval ratings will find it more difficult to persuade their constituents into action. Even if the president is able to persuade the public, he will find Congress uncooperative when they know his approval ratings are not good. Low public approval ratings of the president free members of Congress who would not otherwise support him to pursue their own policy objectives and goals. When presidential approval declines, Congress may consider any public interest in a given topic as fleeting and not be as moved by it as when the president enjoys a great deal of public support. This is particularly true in light of the fact that all presidents see a steady decline in their approval ratings over time. There will be a decline; the only question is how soon and how far. Congress knows this and they will use this information in their determination of response. President George W. Bush’s ratings for much of his second term were so low that he found a “going public strategy” difficult to utilize. The modern presidency is one of constant polling and gauging of public opinion. Presidents have been collecting and attempting to use public opinion data for many years. However, with each passing administration we have seen presidents increase their efforts to measure public opinion both more frequently and on a greater variety of topics. This seemingly ever-growing use of public opinion polls as guidance for presidential action is known as the rise of the permanent campaign. Just as they do during their campaigns, presidents now take into consideration public opinion on issues as well as presidential approval in general when determining strategy and policy action.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Aug 2013 12:30:32 +0000
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