Poll Finds Strong Support for Clinton, Some Skepticism

President-elect Bill Clinton enters his inaugural week with a wave of public support but also considerable skepticism about his willingness to stick to his campaign promises or his ability to accomplish his goals, according to a new survey to be released today.

Clinton’s public image, which was mixed at best during much of last year, has grown more favorable since the election and now stands at 71% favorable, 20% unfavorable--the highest rating for a President-elect in 30 years of inaugural-month polls.

Asked if they approve of the way he has handled his transition, 84% of the voters surveyed said yes, with only 8% saying no. Among those who approved were 70% of those who voted for President Bush and 80% of those who voted for Ross Perot.

By contrast, only 57% of voters surveyed at this point four years ago said they approved of President-elect George Bush’s handling of the transition, and 39% disapproved.

But as the bipartisan team who conducted the survey noted, such ratings often have proven evanescent. For example, the second-highest pre-inaugural favorable rating belongs to Jimmy Carter.

The poll, which surveyed 1,000 registered voters nationwide on Jan. 4 and 5, is the last in a series during the election year by Republican pollster Ed Goeas and Democratic pollster Celinda Lake. The results have a margin of error of 3.1%.

Although Clinton’s popularity is high--and has rubbed off on the Democratic Party--the poll revealed some early signs of potential trouble. Already, for example, 58% of voters have started to believe that Clinton “has had to back off of numerous commitments that he made during the course of the campaign.”

Only 13% thought that Clinton will be able to accomplish “a lot” of the goals he set for himself in the next four years. The bulk of voters, 56%, said they expect that Clinton will be able to accomplish “some” of his agenda in four years, but 28% said he will not be able to accomplish much.