Honeymoon over for Obama?

YouGov
June 16, 2010, 5:39 PM GMT+0

The past week has seen a dramatic increase in negative sentiment towards Barack Obama on the TellYouGov Leaderboard as the row over the BP oil spill rages on. His score stands at -74, representing a decrease of 59 in a week, while his volume has risen to 114 (up 83) putting him near the top of the Leaderboard.

The increase in negative sentiment towards Obama among TellYouGov users, or ‘tyggers’, comes as RSA boss John Napier published an open letter to the US president, in which he said “your comments towards BP and it’s CEO as reported are coming across as somewhat prejudicial and personal,” continuing “There is a sense here that these attacks are being made because BP is British”. It seems some YouGov tyggers hold similar views, with one saying that Obama “seems anti-British”, while another said he “seems to really have it in for Britain”.

With important mid-term elections approaching in November, it seems some tyggers believe that Obama may be “using BP for political gain”. One wrote that they think Obama is “playing to the crowd, rather than dealing with the issues on the oil leak and BP”, while another thinks “President Obama is trying to gain votes through his condemnation of BP”.

However amongst this negative sentiment there are tyggers who have praised Obama’s handling of the crisis and for his “great response to the oil spill off the US coast”. One admired Obama for “standing up to the giant oil corporations rather than being in their pockets” and another for “doing his best during the BP crisis.” For some he is still “the best President ever” and a “fine leader".

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