Dead cat bounce: The White House had hoped the death of Osama bin Laden would be a “transformative moment” for President Obama that would strengthen Obama’s hand in all policy areas. But the early polling returns are showing only limited marginal. The best number for the White House is a Washington Post/Pew poll showing a 56% approval rating for Obama. But this can not be compared to the regular Washington Post/ABC News poll which last showed a 47% approval rating. The polls were conducted differently and the WaPo/Pew poll had a much smaller sample size.

A CNN poll showing a four-point bounce (from 48% to 52%) is probably more accurate. Gallup and Rasmussen both are only one-third through their three day sample cycle, but so far neither is showing dramatic gains. Obama gained one point in Gallup’s poll and nothing in Rasmussen. Finally, SurveyUSA happened to be in the field nationally Monday night and pegged Obama’s approval at 46%. But their last national approval number is from April 2009 so no real comparison is available.