Day186 Thursday 03/03/11

ran 3.8 miles
Polls from Rasmussen Reports:

• Barack Obama’s presidential index rating shows that 25% of American voters strongly approve of his performance while 41% strongly disapprove, giving Obama a presidential index rating of –16.

• Overall, 45% of voters say they at least somewhat approve of Barack Obama’s performance and 54% disapprove.

• Among likely American voters, 66% believe the private sector works harder than government employees, but that government employees have more job security.

• Only 27% of Americans believe the U.S. is generally heading in the right direction.

• Concerning Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker’s standoff with the unionized public, 48% of likely American voters back the GOP governor and 38% agree with the unionized public employees. Also, 38% of voters think teachers, firemen and policemen should be allowed to go on strike while 49% do not believe they should have that right.

• Among American voters, 58% say it’s better to have a partial shutdown of the federal government until Democrats and Republicans can agree on what spending to cut.

While Wisconsin is a steaming cauldron of controversy over unionized collective bargaining with no end in sight, a similar measure in Ohio is moving rapidly toward passage. As the distance shortens to lightening what many Americans view as labor’s heavy thumb on public agencies, passing this legislation in Ohio speedily will empower other states to do the same if it is necessary to the budgeting of their own out of control deficits.

The bill was passed in the Ohio Senate and could go the House committee hearings next week awaiting strong support from the full chamber.

1,557.3 miles to go.