As any attentive visitor can attest, there's been a change in Europeans' views of the US since American voters elected Barack Obama president. As a French resident, I've been stunned by the scope of the sea change.

A recently published study by the Pew Research Center offers data on the changing views of the US and American policies. Two items stand out:

1. Viewing the US favorably

Since Obama took office, Europeans have been looking at the US much more favorably:

                 2008          2009
France        42%            75%
UK              53%            69%
Germany     31%            64%
Spain          33%            58%

2. Do you agree that the US will do the right thing in world affairs?             

                 2008          2009
Germany     13%            93%
France        14%            91%
UK              16%            86%
Spain            8%            72%

The numbers are remarkable, and the Pew study (in all, more than 200 pages) merits attention.