President Obama’s Approval Ratings Highest Since The Killing of Osama bin Laden

A new Associated Press/GFK Poll has President Obama’s approval ratings almost as high as it was when the President was first elected in 2008, and his new ratings are where they were when Mr. Obama announced the killing of Osama bin Laden.

Obama’s approval rating stands at 57 percent, the highest since May 2011, when U.S. Navy SEALs killed the terror leader, and up 5 percentage points from before the election. And 42 percent say the country is on the right track, up from 35 percent in January 2009.

A majority think it’s likely that the president will be able to improve the economy in his second term.

“Compared to the alternative, I’m more optimistic about government and the economy with him in office,” said Jack Reinholt, an independent from Bristol, R.I., who backed Obama in 2008 and again in 2012. “I feel he has the better path laid out.”

Looking ahead to Obama’s final four years, most Americans doubt he can reduce the federal budget deficit. But almost 7 in 10 say he will be able to implement the health care law passed in March 2010 and remove most troops from Afghanistan. And most think he’ll be able to improve the economy and boost race relations in his final term, though both those figures are down significantly from January 2009.