Majority of Coloradans Don’t Think Bill Ritter is Doing a Terrible Job

The times sure have changed for Gov. Bill Ritter. Back in September 2007, two separate polls placed the governor’s approval ratings — in one case, those who believed he was doing an “excellent” or “good” job — around 70 percent:

Ritter’s spokesman said the governor has earned his high approval ratings by taking on renewable energy, transportation, health care and education. “I think the kind of partisan attacks that have come from a few state house Republicans don’t resonate, because the issues that people care about are the issues that Gov. Ritter is addressing,” Evan Dreyer said.

This week, it’s Bill Ritter’s sinking poll numbers that are in the headlines. From today’s Denver Post (including a chance to express your own view in an online poll):

A new poll shows 41 percent of Coloradans say Gov. Bill Ritter is doing a “good” or “excellent” job, a 13-point slip from May that comes after Ritter was getting high marks since his election in 2006….

Evan Dreyer, spokesman for Ritter, discounted the Rasmussen poll.

“The governor does not care about polls,” Dreyer said. “He’s not trying to win a beauty contest. He’s governing and leading to make a positive difference in people’s lives.”…

Dreyer noted that 28 percent of respondents to the July Rasmussen poll said Ritter was doing a “fair” job.

“Excellent, good and fair are positive rankings, and if you add those categories up, they add up to 69 percent,” he said.

Mmm, okay. Which is it, Evan? The Governor doesn’t pay attention to polls, except if you count “fair” as “not too bad,” in which case, hey, look — nearly 70 percent don’t think Bill Ritter is doing a terrible job. Can you imagine this remark from a youngster bringing home his grades from school?: “As, Bs, Cs, and Ds are all positive grades. If you add those categories up, they make up most of the report card….”

Forget the nearly 30-point plummet in approval ratings. Maybe here’s the headline that should have been printed: “Majority of Coloradans Don’t Think Gov. Ritter is Doing a Terrible Job.” Phew. For a minute there, I thought the public might be losing faith in Ritter’s leadership and agenda for a whole host of reasons.