right direction. the bellwether number. gas prices are above $4 a gallon. the bellwether economic number as far as how people feel about their own economic security. and anywhere 50% to 60% of the country approves of the job the president's doing. take a step back from that. >> he was below 50% for a while. that was post osama bin laden. but right now -- >> even right now, even if he was at 48%, numbers like that you normally expect a president's approval to be at 28%, 32%. so i think the country -- politics is often about giving someone the benefit of the doubt. and i think the country is willing to look at the circumstances that the president came in and look at what he's done and say, we're willing to sign up for another four years because he's taking us and doing the right things. i think take these numbers separately, and they could be troubling. put them together and i think it is an interesting story. >> his low point was pretty high. there's no question that he has