Poll: Hillary Clinton seen more favorably

PRINCETON, N.J., Jan. 13 (UPI) -- As Hillary Clinton begins the Senate confirmation process to become U.S. secretary of state, a new Gallup Poll indicates favorable opinion of her is high.

The poll released Tuesday indicates 65 percent of Americans said they had a favorable opinion of Sen. Clinton, D-N.Y., the highest rating for her in nearly 10 years.

Clinton has not had a favorable rating above 60 percent since 1999, after having been consistently above that mark during the Monica Lewinsky scandal that led to the impeachment and eventual acquittal of her husband President Bill Clinton, Gallup said. Her all-time high was the 67 percent favorable rating immediately after the House of Representatives voted to impeach the president in December 1998.

Since late 1999, Hillary Clinton's favorable ratings have been around 50 percent, the Princeton, N.J., polling agency reported.

If confirmed as President-elect Barack Obama's secretary of state, respondents generally have a positive view of the kind of job she would do, Gallup said. A majority say she will be an outstanding or above-average secretary of state. Only 14 percent evaluated her negatively.

Results are based on nationwide telephone interviews conducted Friday through Sunday with 1,031 adults. The survey's margin of error is 3 percentage points.