Obama's Approval Rating Hits High Note After Bin Laden's Death

A new poll shows that President Barack Obama's approval rating has risen since the and it is well deserved, according to Eugene Campbell, executive director of the in Stamford.

"I think the president is doing a great job during a tough time in our country," he told Patch. "I have always had confidence in his ability to lead the country."

As reported on the Huffington Post, 60 percent of Americans now say Obama deserves to be re-elected, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll. This is the president's highest approval rating in two years.

In addition, 73 percent now say they are confident that Obama can effectively handle terrorist threats, while 45 percent say the country is headed in the right direction, up from 35 percent in March. He still, however,  has to convince 52 percent of those polled — they say that he's on the wrong track.

Campbell described the approval rating as an "emotional bump" and said that are a lot of skeptics that still need convincing. "The way the economy looks [after his term ends] will be real telling," he said.

Campbell also dismissed those that think Obama is using bin Laden's death to his political advantage ahead of the 2012 election.

"We as human beings, I think, have a hard time giving people credit," he said. "You can't dictate history. History creates the moment that defines one's character... And some people think that Obama didn't give the Bush administration enough credit for his role, but I think did. Obama's administration took some of the tools and staffing from the previous administration, but [his administration] was able to close the deal."

The poll was conducted May 5-9 by GfK Roper Public Affairs and Corporate Communications. It involved landline and cellphone interviews with 1,001 adults nationwide. It has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4.2 percentage points.