President Barack Obama speaks to supporters at his election-night headquarters as he celebrates his re-election on Wednesday, November 7, 2012, in Chicago, Ill. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/MCT)
With an approval rating hovering around 45 percent, President Barack Obama is facing tough questions from all sides, including those who’ve been some of the most resilient supporters: young adults.
In a CNN/ORC International survey released June 17, the president’s approval ratings sunk eight points, including a 17-point decline in support from voters under the age of 30.
These new figures represent Obama’s lowest marks over the course of his presidency, as he continues to grapple with the recent spying program undertaken by the National Security Agency, or NSA. Three weeks after it was revealed the NSA has been keeping watch on citizen’s internet activities without their knowledge, experts believe the issue has rubbed millennials the wrong way.
“The NSA issues have definitely hit home with young voters,” said Joe DiSano, a partner at the Lansing-based Main Street Strategies political consulting firm.
In an ever increasing digital world, DiSano said young voters have become increasingly concerned with government agencies keeping tabs on them.
“The thought that the government has the ability to snoop on citizens is terrifying,” he continued.
While DiSano puts little stock in the importance of approval ratings during nonvoting years, he believes the president loses leverage with lawmakers when there’s decreased support from the American people.
Evan Feinberg, the president of Generation Opportunity, a Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, said recent NSA leaks and the response from college-aged voters stands as a confirmation of his group’s beliefs.
“Young people are fed up with big government,” he said.
Feinberg and Generation Opportunity, which advocates for the economic interests of young adults, have been critical of the president’s handling of the NSA leak as well as the economy. He said he believes the younger generation has always had a libertarian streak and simply wants to be left alone.
MSU students were divided when it came to evaluating Obama’s job performance.
Chemistry sophomore Megan Chilcote said while she continues to support the president, there is work that remains undone.
“He hasn’t been as strict on his policies, and he hasn’t fulfilled a lot of promises,” Chilcote said.
Meanwhile Bobby Fox, an accounting senior, had a bone to pick with Obama’s handling of civil liberties.
“He has gone back on his promises to end wiretapping and has actually increased the power of the government to spy on its citizens,” he said
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