Opinion: After McCain or Obama wins, what are the chances of a break from poll pollution?

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Maybe you’re one of those conscientious American voters who’s still pretty much had it with each day’s 17 new political polls, each one telling a conflicting story line about the floating fortunes in the race between the Sens. Barack Obama-Joe Biden Democratic ticket and the Republican package of Sen. John McCain and Gov. Sarah Palin.

And, so, you can’t wait until next Tuesday is over so you’ll only have to endure the occasional poll showing how the new president’s popularity is plummeting because, it turns out after these guys spend $3 billion to buy the White House, it doesn’t really matter who’s in there anyway.

Thank goodness, after Election Day this carpet-polling will cease.

Not.

Nope. No way. The Gallup Poll -- which you may have missed if you’ve been asleep since June, has run a closely-watched daily tracking survey of voters in the presidential election contest this year.

Now, Gallup says it plans to start a daily measure of the president-elect’s popularity and voter-optimism right after Election Day. Daily.

This is new territory: During the transition to a new White House, before the guy even opens a single drawer in the Oval Office, Gallup will be interrogating voters every 24 hours about their optimism over the new administration and their opinion of the president-elect, favorable, unfavorable.

News you didn’t need to know.

The daily obsession with polling will carry over not only during the transition from Nov. 5 until Jan. 20, it appears, but also throughout the new president’s new term. Surely, you’re already wondering who’s in the lead now for 2012.

Gallup plans to run a daily tracking survey of presidential job approval after the inauguration of the 44th president on Jan. 20 -- as opposed to the biweekly gauges that Gallup has offered during President Bush’s terms.

Bush has gone from ‘the highest approval rating in history’’ (90% after the 9/11 attacks) to a near-record low -- 25% at the latest Gallup measure. That is still not a record low. Harry Truman bottomed out at 22% in 1952. But he’s dead and doesn’t care.

And Congress, which both party’s presidential candidates are trying to flee, is enjoying a poll approval somewhere around 9%, which as McCain likes to note, is pretty much down to family, friends and staff.

Anyway, our blogging buddy Mark Silva over at the Swamp has more details on Gallup’s nefarious scheme to drive everyone crazy, +/- 4.5%.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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