Fox News poll: ‘Do you think Obama is still sneaking cigarettes at the White House?’
By on Jun 12th, 2009 at 10:00 am
Fox News poll: ‘Do you think Obama is still sneaking cigarettes at the White House?’
Huffington Post’s Sam Stein highlighted an eye-catching question in the Fox News poll that was released yesterday. Noting that President Obama “says he quit smoking,” Fox’s poll asked whether people believed he was “still sneaking cigarettes.” Thirty-seven percent said that they did:
As ThinkProgress has previously noted, Fox News polls are known for often including a few loaded and misleading questions. In May, a Fox poll asked, “Who do you think the White House will put in a muzzle first — Vice President Joe Biden or First Dog Bo?”
View Most Popular
Advertisement
What We're About
What We're Fighting For
What We're Fighting Against
Featured
Subscribe to the Progress Report
Topic CloudView topics sorted by popularity
Afghanistan
Bachmann
Beck
Boehner
Bush
Business
Cheney
Civil Rights
Congress
Corporate Ethics
Dobbs
Economy
Education
Election
Energy
Environment
Ethics
Fox News
Gingrich
Glenn Beck
Global Warming
Health Care
Immigration
International Relations
Justice
LGBT
Lieberman
Limbaugh
Media
Military
O'Reilly
Obama
Palin
Pelosi
Politics
Race
Radical Right
Religion
Steele
Stimulus
Tea Parties
Tea Party
Terrorism
Veterans
Women's Rights
Visit Our Affiliated Sites
Reports
In-depth studies on select topics
Got a hot tip?
Have a hot news tip? We'd love to hear from you. Use the form below to send us the latest.
ArchivesBlog Roll
Fake News has the most bogus polls I’ve ever seen!
June 12th, 2009 at 10:03 amDid they even care about Jeff Gannon’s off-the-record late-night visits to Dumbya?
IOKIYAR.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:03 amOy.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:07 amQ: Do you believe Fox News is fairly unbalanced?
Q: Do you believe Sean Hannity is a journalist?
Q: Do you believe Steve Doocey is actually a man?
Q: Do you believe Ann Coulter stands up to pee?
Hardhitting journalism at it’s finest…
June 12th, 2009 at 10:08 amWho REALLY cares if he is? Last I knew, cigarette smoking is still legal and Obama is well past the age of majority.
FAUX News is ridiculous and irrelevant!
June 12th, 2009 at 10:09 amSuggestions for the next FoxSnooze poll question list:
1) is Bristol keeping the barn door closed or still taking a roll in the hay from time to time?
2) do you think it’s manly when John Boehner cries?
3) Liz Cheney — boxers or briefs?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:10 amOh, give me a break. THIS is a worthy poll question? There’s no way of knowing for sure, so people are left to say what they “think” — an opinion formed on the basis of no information whatsoever. This is like asking if we think Barack Obama eats all the vegetables on his plate. Who knows? Who cares?
But the point of the poll isn’t to gauge the public’s perception of Obama’s smoking habits, is it? The point of the poll is to CHANGE the perception of Obama’s smoking habits. And I really don’t care if he smokes or not, as long as he does it outdoors away from others, and doesn’t do it in public or on camera.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:10 amFox News poll: ‘Do you think Obama is still sneaking cigarettes at the White House?’
– - Next up on Fox, “Is Obama still beating his wife?”
June 12th, 2009 at 10:10 amDo you believe Dick Cheney still beats his wife?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:10 am#9 — Art, doncha know that Lynn probably beats Cheney and he probably loves it. He has an S/M fetish I believe.
Probably uses velvet and feather handcuffs, too!
June 12th, 2009 at 10:11 amDo I think he’s still smoking? Well, I know that if I were President, especially in times like these, I would be sneaking a smoke every now and again.
Now ask me if I care. The answer is “No.” You know why? One – he’s an adult and cigarettes are legal. Do I approve? Not really, but I’m not one to tell adults how to live their lives. Reason two why I don’t give a shit if he’s smoking or not – as long as he gets the job done, I don’t care what he has to do to relieve stress. Clinton got blow jobs, W drank, Obama smokes. All at probably similar frequencies. Big effin whoop.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:12 amWas Dubya really sober while in the White House?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:13 amIf Jed Bartlet could sneak cigarettes in the White House, why can’t Obama?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:15 amWas Dubya really sober while in the White House?
If GDumbya has been sober at all in the past 40 years, it was probably accidental.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:17 amDo you think rush is still addicted to OxyContin ?
Do you think his drug abuse was in any way connected with the rumors of him soliciting child prostitutes ?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:18 amYAWN
BORING!
just because people who watch fox waste their time with this type of crap doesn’t mean we have to.
i don’t even care if obama smokes or has quit smoking
in fact, i don’t care at all about his personal life.
i just care about his politics and his ability to do his job.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:18 amDo you think Rove is still having ‘private meetings’ with Jeff Gannon?
Do you think Bush is still drinking a six pack with each line of coke?
Do you think Cheney still leaves the toilet seat up on purpose?
Wheeeeeee!!!!!!!!!
June 12th, 2009 at 10:19 amStill implies continuing.
When did our PRESIDENT first sneak cigarettes into the White House?
Secondly, who gives a flying fuch???
Oh wait, the 23%ers who will find fault with anything, just to find fault.
(In my best valley-speak)
June 12th, 2009 at 10:20 amWhat Evahhhh!
tom,
1) Closed (by order of the management)
2) No, it makes his makeup run
3) Boxers
June 12th, 2009 at 10:20 amIf I was President I would smoke in the Oval Office.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:22 amif President Obama can face this crisis roulette AND quit smoking, then he is indeed, a certified badass.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:24 amCigarettes??????
I’d like to see him sneaking in a fattie.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:25 amThis poll is a perfect illustration of why public opinion polls are meaningless and reflective of nothing useful. Since virtually everyone who answered this polling question has nothing to do with the White House, none of them would be in a position to know the truth one way or the other. The only ones who answered this question truthfully were the ones who said they didn’t know if Obama still smoked. Anyone who said Yes or No was speculating. Add to this the fact that statistics is misused to interpret polling results and you have a colossal waste of time and energy.
If Fox News Channel wants to be taken seriously as a news organization, then they have to stop asking stupid, ridiculous, irrelevant, unknowable questions like this.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:26 amWayne, please remember that FNC sued for the right to not be taken seriously as a news organization.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:28 amAnd why was it necessary to say “sneaking cigarettes” — as if President Obama was a 12 year old puffing away behind the barn? Ah yes — in a push poll, wording is everything when you’re trying to catapult propaganda.
In the first place, Obama’s a grownup and cigarettes are legal. If he wants to smoke, he probably doesn’t have to “sneak”.
In the second place, the President of the United States probably doesn’t get away with “sneaking” much of anything. He’s lucky he gets to pee in private.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:29 amOh, Wayne, sometimes your naiveté is so charming.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:29 amI’m pretty sure he couldn’t get away with it, with all the long-range lenses surrounding the WH. If he had it’d be in a tabloid somewhere.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:31 amralph,
As I said once before, I dream the impossible dream that I may reach the unreachable star. ;)
June 12th, 2009 at 10:33 amdeebaser Says
June 12th, 2009 at 10:22 am
If I was President I would smoke in the Oval Office.
_____________________________________________________________
I suspect even the POTUS has to step outside to smoke. I’m not sure, but I think both the federal government and the District of Columbia have ordinances about smoking in workplaces.
He could probably get away with smoking in the First Family residence, however. Oh wait…no, Michelle would kill him.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:33 amLOL! OOH. So Obama is sneaking cigarettes! Run for the hills Ma Barker! Before I call the Feds!
June 12th, 2009 at 10:34 am(Deep sinister voice) “And we all know what smoking cigarettes leads to…….”
….
….. ummmm…. lung cancer?……
June 12th, 2009 at 10:35 amAnd Dick Cheney kept a submissive gimp in his man-sized safe. To relieve the stress from a long day of wiping his @ss with our Constitution, striking fear into the populace, blackmailing politicos with illegally garned dirt, beating his war drums for another war and ordering the torture of brown men, Mr. Cheney would burn cigar marks into his gimp’s @ss while sipping single malt scotch and making compilation dvd’s of his favorite CIA torture sessions. So!
June 12th, 2009 at 10:38 amWhen “poll respondents” votes are split along 3rds, it’s pretty much a vote of “who gives a shit”.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:38 amOh… my bad… I guess that the prominent word in there is “sneaking”.
Now, all you FOX-zombies, get that right. When you think “President Obama” what word comes to mind?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:38 amI would like to second vinylspear’s comment.
I know I would. If the most powerful man on the planet can’t spark a doob and unwind from a rough day, then what has the world come to, you know? I’d rather him be stoned when the 3am phone call came in than drunk. Butt, hey, that’s just me.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:39 amHAHAHA!!
That should say “But, hey,” not “Butt, hey.”
Even the preview button doesn’t stop us from the really silly mistakes.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:41 amSo if it is an obviously stupid question and gets completely uninformed answers, why are you reporting this. I don’t think we can afford to ignore all of the crap on Fox — some is dangerous. But please, lets spend less time reacting to this sort of stuff — leave them too it and don’t multiply the nonsense.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:42 amI don’t care if the President smoke a big, fat, fully loaded doobie as long as he can get the job done…
June 12th, 2009 at 10:42 amI LOVE that this is all they’ve got. How pathetically lame.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:44 amFox instant poll: Do you agree with us when we say that this poll will save the free world’s economic turmoil that Obama started?
A. Yes
June 12th, 2009 at 10:45 amB. Very yes
C. Somewhat yes
D. I’m a liberal
AmericasBack Says:
I could really care less if he smokes or not (other than caring that he lives a long long life). Like I said, it makes him more like the average person.
Good point. And I second the difficulty in quitting smoking, and that there really is nothing else that compares (cigarette smokers smoke all throughout the day — it is physiological by chemical and by the activity itself, and it is psychological). Non-smokers (to include those who have kicked other habits, but never smoked) really have no clue as to how difficult it is to stop smoking.
So, to get this right, Bush was a “great guy to go have a beer with” which made him a better president (by rightwing arguments) — so, wouldn’t the guy you can “go out back and have a cigarette break with” have the same props? And, hell, I’ve never seen a smoker chain-smoke a pack and then start picking fights at random from the nicotine rush.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:45 amWhy is the question even relevant?
June 12th, 2009 at 10:45 amDid Fox ever ask if Bush sneaked bottles at the White House…?
I guess they did not.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:47 amThe question illustartes the overall relevancy that FOX should receive.
Gotta love corporate sponsors with agendas.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:49 amDid Fox ever ask if anyone sneaked Jeff Gannon at the White House…?
I know they did not.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:50 amI suspect this little gem is a lead in to the FDA tobacco regulation thingy. Just how they might spin the President has been known to smoke with regulating what the cigarette industry is allowed to put in cigarettes waits to be seen. It could be interesting.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:52 amProbably, but I doubt he is snorting coke and having sex with energy lobbyists.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:57 amCrap, Whats next. How about a fox poll asking its veiwers if they find the first lady`s sleevless tops offensive.
June 12th, 2009 at 10:58 amFox News: All the news that isn’t.
Fox News: All that news that’s not fit to print.
Fox News: Please don’t try and make important decisions about your life based on the shit we feed you.
June 12th, 2009 at 11:03 amJust like Faux. Bush was a heavy drinker, but that’s OK. Barack is a former smoker, OMG! What a weak man! Give me a break!
June 12th, 2009 at 11:06 amDRxJ Poll: Do you think DICK Cheney still drinks a six pack or more in the morning, before going hunting for “clipped” quails, with “friends”?
June 12th, 2009 at 11:08 ampolls like this, in which respondents are asked to GUESS answers to questions they don’t really know anything about, are UTTERLY STUPID.. and a waste of anyone’s time.. folks conducting polls like this either have a lot of money to burn or a lot of time on their hands, or both.
June 12th, 2009 at 11:11 amThere’s a poll on MSNBC that askes if Letterman went to far. I, myself, thought it was over the top. But lovely Sarah NEVER misses an opportunity to make it all about HER.
June 12th, 2009 at 11:15 am-Do Hannityand Olliar really represent your average Irish person?
June 12th, 2009 at 11:23 am-Is Neil Cuavoto a worthless pos?
-Do you have to have plague on the brain to enjoy Fauz news?
tony and lido
Here’s a poll question:
After seeing the photos, do you think former president Bush was falling down drunk at the Beijing Olympics, or on some other form of drugs?
PEACE
June 12th, 2009 at 11:23 amIf President Obama can quit smoking while continuing his efforts to deal with the total mess this country was in when he arrived in DC, he is perhaps superhuman.
Happy Friday all and thanks for the great laughs on this thread.
June 12th, 2009 at 11:26 amLet the man smoke…..
June 12th, 2009 at 11:26 amJimmy Big Bucks Says:
——————————————————————————–
Let the man smoke…..
June 12th, 2009 at 11:26 am Recommend (0) | Report Abuse
——————————————————————————–Why are you still polluting this sight?atony dnd lido
June 12th, 2009 at 11:32 am
And the reason why this matters is?
I didn’t see Fox taking polls about Laura Bush’s smoking habit. So why in the hell do they care if President Obama is still smoking?
I can’t help but believe that people are beginning to recognize the hate speech that comes from Fox resulting in people being killed. Perhaps that will be an incentive for them to turn off Fox and go elsewhere for their news.
June 12th, 2009 at 11:34 amWhere was the Fox “news” poll asking if readers thought Bush was still “sneaking a beer” now & then?
June 12th, 2009 at 11:35 amYou need to add a fourth option to that poll: Don’t give a crap. or, more politely, None of my damn business. And BTW, as Bilbo said,
I didn’t see Fox taking polls about Laura Bush’s smoking habit. So why in the hell do they care if President Obama is still smoking?
She smoked so much that her lips had hundreds of tiny little lines around them–the sure sign of a chain smoker. OK, Conservabots….where’s the outrage there?
June 12th, 2009 at 11:52 amHas anyone asked Jeff Boste what Jeff thinks?
June 12th, 2009 at 12:01 pmA scientific poll would go like this:
Who is the biggest drama queen:
a) Billdo
June 12th, 2009 at 12:17 pmb) KKKlownnity
c) Baboon *sniff, sniff* Beck
d) Limpo
e) All of the above suck, big time
I really dislike seeing anyone smoking, but President Obama is not a child. He can smoke if he wants to.
But I’d rather he didn’t…
June 12th, 2009 at 12:23 pmZooey Says:
I really dislike seeing anyone smoking, but President Obama is not a child. He can smoke if he wants to.
But I’d rather he didn’t…
I’m sure he would rather he didn’t Zooey. But, can you imagine trying to quit a habit as addictive as smoking under the kind of pressure Obama has been under for the last year? I quit smoking and didn’t have any pressure on me at all. It was the hardest thing I have ever done.
Even if he is still smoking, the amount of cigarettes he consumes in a day must be way down because I haven’t seen one picture of him holding a cigarette.
June 12th, 2009 at 12:26 pmIt looks like the Surge™ in Troll Central spending has come to an end. After a few days of ramped-up troll activity on TP, culminating in the all-out “White Supremacist is a Leftist!” offensive the other day, troll activity has dropped by like ninety percent.
I guess their endowment wasn’t really invested properly.
June 12th, 2009 at 12:29 pmI think I would be more worried if I did not think that he steps out for a smoke every once in awhile to relive the stress of being President.
I’d rather have a smoker as President then a drunk….
and GET.Out.OF.Here….Laura smokes?
June 12th, 2009 at 12:46 pmHoodathunktick
You make a good point. But I have to say, as someone who lives in Kentucky – aka tobacco central, in conjunction with NC and VA, or course – has always lived with smokers, and is a recently reformed smoker for the third time (that’s how many times it has taken me to quit, who even knows if it will stick – I know people who have “quit” dozens of times), I fully support the legislation.
The difference between those like Fox News and normal people – normal people can recognize a good thing, even if they personally have to take a minor hit for it. The truth of the matter is that there is no reason whatsoever that a substance like tobacco (actually nicotine, which is clearly a drug) should not be under the regulatory authority of the FDA. When I heard about it, I said, out loud, “It’s about time.” We’re talking about things like not making nicotine candy which is clearly geared toward children, and stopping deceptive practices like labeling cigarettes “Light” without telling anyone they are talking about taste not nicotine/tar levels. That is a GOOD thing.
It has nothing to do with being pro- or anti-smoking, and everything to do with being pro- or anti-common sense.
June 12th, 2009 at 1:08 pmthe questions are always idiotic!
54. Do you think it’s moral that president obama is still smoking, while destroying the economy, being a muslim marxist socialist who isnt a natural citizen?
yes
no
How can anyone with a brain even answer these polls?
June 12th, 2009 at 1:42 pmSpeaking as a former smoker I found it easy to quit but many don’t. Who cares if Obama smokes? It’s his body, his business.
I won’t even get into how bad that poll was since you all did such a great job on that lol.
June 12th, 2009 at 1:56 pmJudging by the silliness of these questions, Fox listeners must not have an education past 7th grade. These questions are so pubescent.
June 12th, 2009 at 1:59 pmFox is missing this optional response… “Does anyone really care”.
June 12th, 2009 at 2:01 pmThey forgot a column labeled “don’t care.”
June 12th, 2009 at 2:04 pmOops cats, you beat me to it. :)
June 12th, 2009 at 2:04 pmObama sneaking a smoke? Who cares!!!!!
Must be a seriously slow polling time for faux news. Either that or they can’t find a poll topic that would support an agenda item they want to say is a majority supported opinion.
June 12th, 2009 at 2:16 pm1) Notice how the numbers for each category are so similar. It almost looks like the respondents had to say something, so they picked one of the categories at random.
2) I am a militant non-smoker. Even then, I see Obama as a smoker who is trying to quit. At the same time, he is in one of the highest stress/pressure jobs in the world in a time where he is left cleaning up the disaster left from the last 8 years.
If anyone else, this would be a reality TV show (The Biggest non-Smokier) used to inspire folks.
June 12th, 2009 at 2:36 pmWHO CARES?????????????
AS LONG AS HE’S FIXING THE MESS BUSH LEFT US, HE CAN SMOKE BANANA LEAVES FOR ALL I CARE (or anything else, his heart desires!!!!)!!!!
June 12th, 2009 at 2:39 pm“Fox News poll: ‘Do you think Obama is still sneaking cigarettes at the White House?’ ”
Please… and who cares… Did the Blowhard Network take a poll to whether the former clown President snuck weed and booze into the White House for past 8 years? I think not. Seriously, Fox has nothing better else to do, no real news to report, and time on their hands.
June 12th, 2009 at 2:48 pmThey don’t have time to talk about the Holocaust Museum shooting and its right-wing perpetrator because there are much more important stories designed to make Obama look bad. If they can’t have an outright coup, they’ll try a thousand cuts.
June 12th, 2009 at 2:53 pmPersonally, I don’t care whether Obama is actually still smoking or not (although, after having lost both my maternal and paternal grandmothers to long-term nicotine addicition, I hope for his own sake that he’s not). What I do want to know is…where does Fox find these alleged Democrats who supposedly answer their polls? I’m inclined to suspect that these are probably DINOs or people who until recently were Republicans but who out of frustration with the party no longer identify themselves that way — not genuine, bona fide Democrats. Personally, I wouldn’t trust Fox News as far as I could comfortably throw them and would refuse on principle to have anything to do with them, even something as simple and seemingly innocuous as answering a poll.
June 12th, 2009 at 7:04 pmAt least it asks “Do you think…” I despise polls that are phrased in such a way that they are asking people to decide what the facts are.
I don’t care if he has a cigarette, now and then. He’s handling quite a lot, very well, IMO.
June 12th, 2009 at 7:25 pmBut but but the insurance companies have invested billions in tobacco producing companies..I bet they send free cigarettes to the white house and senate and congress.
June 13th, 2009 at 12:46 amActually he found a stash that Laura left behind.
June 13th, 2009 at 12:48 amTypical heavy duty reporting by Fox. Alternative news is right. Any alternative is better than Fix. I see better reporting daily in any high school newspaper.
June 13th, 2009 at 4:55 pmTo be fair, Gibbs’ answer to the question was extremely evasive. When asked about it: “I think the president would likely tell you, as I think many — anybody would that has smoked or been addicted to smoking — that it is a lifelong struggle.” So yeah, he’s probably sneaked a few.
June 14th, 2009 at 1:00 amen son videolar
June 14th, 2009 at 12:39 pmen son videolar