Robert Gibbs Touts Gallup Numbers When They Support Obama

White House Press Secretary, Robert Gibbs, recently ridiculed a Gallup poll which showed the President's approval ratings at a record low for this stage of his presidency, for seemingly no other reason than they showed the President in a negative light.  Gibbs referred to the Gallup polling organization as a wildly fluctuating EKG, labeling their results as the equivalent of ‘a 6-year-old with a crayon.'

Predictably, this administration has managed to throw a temper tantrum at every instance of failure that has defined them.  The only surprise here, being that Gibbs was capable of taking the pacifier out of his mouth long enough to make the analogy.

On the other hand, it was mere months ago that Gibbs himself used Gallup poll numbers to demonstrate support for President Obama's economic stimulus plan - a stimulus plan that a 6-year-old with a crayon would have voted ‘no' on.

Gibbs Gallup glorifying after the break...

Yes, Mr. Gibbs was so giddy over the Gallup survey - which showed roughly two-thirds of the public approved of the way Obama was handling the passage of the economic stimulus package - that he sent out an e-mail to reporters which praised the findings. 

As the Washington Post reported on February 9th, 2009 (emphasis mine):

"As President Barack Obama heads to Indiana and Florida over the next two days to sell his economic stimulus plan to a somewhat skeptical Congress, White House and congressional Democrats are moving around new poll data that suggests the public is broadly supportive of the bill.

White House press secretary Robert Gibbs sent out an email to reporters this morning touting the data -- from a Gallup survey -- that showed roughly two-thirds of the public approves of the way Obama is handling the passage of the economic stimulus package while just 31 percent say the same of congressional Republicans."

MSNBC also covered the then Gallup-loving Gibbs:

"Aides David Axelrod and Robert Gibbs, both of whom were fixtures of the campaign plane, accompanied the president to this swing state, which he won narrowly in November. The pair spoke with the press aboard Air Force One on the flight from Washington, arguing that the latest Gallup poll showed there was strong support for the stimulus package."

CNN also reported on how Obama echoed the comments made by Axelrod and Gibbs throughout the week, which continued the theme of citing Gallup as the be-all/end-all poll of choice regarding the stimulus:

Speaking to journalists aboard Air Force One Tuesday, President Obama continued to make the case his top aides have pressed this week: that public support for his stimulus proposal is far stronger than many reports have reflected. "I think if you took a look at the Gallup poll yesterday, the American people don't need convincing," he said.

Apparently, Gallup is an important polling source only if the numbers support the President's decisions. 

This is pretty much typical behavior for the Obama administration - cite polls and fuzzy numbers to push a radical agenda, and if any organization dares dissent, ridicule them as being irrelevant and partisan.

Gibbs condescension is rather stunning, considering he is the press secretary for the lowest rated President at this stage of the game since Harry Truman. 

Then again, give a 6-year-old a podium...

Photo Source:  Alex Wong/Getty Images