Public Opinion Snapshot: Tax the Rich, Pass the Jobs Bill

By Ruy Teixeira | October 11, 2011

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President Barack Obama is strongly making the case for his jobs proposal lately and arguing equally strongly that the rich should foot the bill for this legislation. He appears to be winning the battle of public opinion on both fronts.

In the most recent Washington Post/ABC poll, 52 percent say they support his plan, even though the $450 billion price tag is prominently mentioned, and just 36 percent are opposed.

And in the same poll, respondents were asked whether President Obama’s jobs package, if it passed Congress, would improve the jobs situation. By a 58-40 margin, the public said it would.

As for taxing the rich, that idea is wildly popular. By an astounding 52-point margin (75-23) the public supports the idea of raising taxes on those making over $1 million a year.

Conservatives said the American people would reject President Obama’s proposals because they were “big government, tax and spend.” And many pundits predicted President Obama’s aggressive approach would alienate centrist voters who wanted a continued focus on deficit reduction and bipartisanship at all costs. Wrong on both counts.

Ruy Teixeira is a Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress. To learn more about his public opinion analysis, go to the Media and Progressive Values page and the Progressive Studies program page of our website.