Pope Francis’ popularity among American conservatives has plummeted since early 2014, a new Gallup poll finds. The dramatic drop among conservatives mirrors a broader, but-far-less-steep drop in the pope’s popularity among all Americans.
The pope’s favorability rating among conservatives shrunk from 72 percent in February 2014 to 45 percent now, Gallup found in its poll released Wednesday. Moderates and liberals also cooled somewhat with Francis, but a majority in both groups still view him positively. His favorability among moderates decreased from from 79 to 71 percent, and among liberals from 82 to 68 percent.
Overall, Francis has an favorability rating of 59 percent, down from 76 percent the February 2014 survey. “The pontiff’s rating is similar to the 58% he received from Americans in April 2013, soon after he was elected pope,” Gallup reported.
Gallup’s telephone survey of 1,009 adults nationwide was conducted July 8-12, 2015. It has a margin of error of four points.
The pope has drawn the ire of some Republicans for releasing a sweeping encyclical decrying climate change, supporting President Obama’s move to revive relations with Cuba and criticizing conservative economic policies. However, while he has softened the Church’s language dealing with some social issues, Pope Francis continued its opposition to same-sex marriage and abortion.
Gallup’s poll comes ahead of the pope’s plans in September to address a joint session of Congress for the first time in history.
Unless these “conservatives” are Catholic, why would anyone, least of all Pope Francis, give a shit?
Proving yet again that one of the most prominent characteristics of conservative derpitude, i.e., that “you’re supposed to tell me what I want to hear or I hate you”…applies even to the Pope, the Church, the Bible and God.
I said ti before and I’ll say it again: it’s only a matter of time before they get it in their heads that they need to “take our religion back.”
It would help to know how American Catholics in general view the pope. Besides Rick Santorum, that is.
Obi-Wan Kenobi would call them “imperial entanglements”…
Perhaps Rachel will touch on that with her interview with Santorum tonight??