Recently, I wrote about the political gravity President Obama has been experiencing during his first year in office.  Indeed, as we’ve seen in all the polls approval ratings for him and his party have steadily declined since he assumed office in February 2009.

A key part of why the public has soured on the new President and his Administration during this first year of Democrat governance is that Americans don’t think much is getting done on the issues that matter most to them.  The economy continues to struggle, efforts at health care reform have dragged on and on, and the federal deficit continues to climb.

But, there’s more to it than the issues themselves and how they’re being handled.  There’s the philosophical question of how to approach these issues, and how much government should be involved in our lives.

A new Fox News/Opinion Dynamics Poll* provides a very clear picture of how voters feel about this, and illustrates the extraordinary disconnect between what President Obama and Democrats want and what the rest of the country wants.

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There’s broad agreement that President Obama believes in bigger government that provides more services rather than smaller government that provides fewer services.  But, Democrats are the only group who express a preference for bigger government, while Independents and Republicans solidly favor smaller government.

So, if you’ve been wondering why the President and Democrats continue to jam through health care reform and other legislation voters don’t want, this chart should explain a lot.  It’s a clear case of ideological zealotry over-riding both political common sense, and more importantly, the will of the American people.

*Fox News/Opinion Dynamics national survey conducted February 23-24, 2010 among 900 registered voters.

Public Opinion Strategies