NBC Hails Obama's Turkey Visit as 'Shrewd', CBS: Highest-Ever Approval

Giving a warm wind-up to President Barrack Obama's overseas trip as it comes to an end in Istanbul, NBC's Chuck Todd declared Monday that the decision to make Turkey the last stop “could prove to be one of the shrewder early moves in this young presidency.”

On CBS, anchor Katie Couric highlighted how a new CBS News/New York Times poll pegged Obama's approval at 66 percent, the highest ever in that survey the CBSNews.com online posting touted: “Obama Approval Hits New High -- 66%.” Couric also pointed out how Obama has made Americans feel better with the “wrong direction” measure for the nation falling from 89, under Bush, to 53 percent: “More than half still say we're heading the wrong way, but that's a dramatic 36-point improvement from the waning days of the Bush administration.”

Reporter Chip Reid showcased more positive poll results for Obama's trip, as “67 percent of Americans believe the President will return to the U.S. with the respect of world leaders.”

The lead to the CBSNews.com summary of the poll:

As President Obama concludes his well-publicized trip to Europe, Americans are more positive about the respect accorded to a U.S. president than they have been in years, according to a new CBS News/New York Times poll.

Sixty-seven percent say world leaders respect Mr. Obama, while 18 percent say they do not respect the president. That's a sharp contrast to the response when this question was asked about Mr. Obama's predecessor, George W. Bush, in July 2006: Just 30 percent then said the president is respected by the leaders of other countries.

Mr. Obama's overall approval rating, meanwhile, has hit a new high of 66 percent, up from 64 percent last month. His disapproval rating stands at 24 percent. Nearly all Democrats and most independents approve of the way the president is handling his job, while only 31 percent of Republicans approve....

Chuck Todd began his NBC Nightly News report from Istanbul, the last stop in Obama's travels:

From a rainy Istanbul and what could prove to be one of the shrewder early moves in this young presidency, Mr. Obama is choosing to close his first overseas trip here in Turkey to do two things: Elevate the country's role in the world and, two, prove to the Muslim world that he means what he says in his pledge to reach out and he did it in a very personal way...

From the Monday, April 6 CBS Evening News:

KATIE COURIC: More now about President Obama. His young term is still being measured in weeks -- 11 as of tomorrow -- and here's another number: 66 percent. That's his job approval rating in a CBS News/New York Times poll out tonight. As for the direction of the country, more than half still say we're heading the wrong way, but that's a dramatic 36-point improvement from the waning days of the Bush administration [89 to 53%]. Meanwhile, Chip Reid reports, President Obama was trying today to improve relations with the Muslim world and a key NATO ally.

....

CHIP REID: The President's foreign travel appears to be helping him at home. According to the new CBS News/ New York Times poll, 67 percent of Americans believe the President will return to the U.S. with the respect of world leaders. The poll also has good news for Mr. Obama on the economy: 68 percent say they're satisfied or enthusiastic about his handling of the economic crisis. The results are less favorable for his proposal to bail out the auto industry, only 47 percent approve, and only 33 percent approve of his efforts to bail out banks...