Poll: Cheney Less Popular Than OJ

“How low is 18 percent?” This was a headline in the Washington Post on March 5. The 18 percent is the support rate of vice president Dick Cheney from a public opinion survey conducted by CBS.

The Washington Post included the support rates of notoriously famous people to prove how low 18% is.

Michael Jackson, who was alleged of sexually harassing an underage boy, and American football player O.J. Simpson, who caused a huge clamor for being suspected of murdering his wife in 1994, each maintained 25 percent and 29 percent favorable impression rates, respectively.

The paper pointed out that even vice president Spiro Agnew during the Nixon presidency who resigned due to tax evasion allegations still maintained a 45 percent support rate right until he resigned in 1973.

The only person less popular than Vice President Cheney is Paris Hilton, the female actress. Hilton, who is the heiress of the global hotel chain Hilton Group, and who has a “blonde party girl” image, only got a 15 percent approval rating.

The paper wrote, “A consolation factor is that 35 percent of those polled refused to answer the question,” and added, “these people may be the past supporters of the vice president, and could help to reverse his popularity rating.”

Seung-Ryun Kim srkim@donga.com