Americans most admire Obama, Clinton, Palin in polling

President Obama is the man Americans admired most in 2009, a USA TODAY/Gallup Poll finds, while Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and former Alaska governor Sarah Palin are almost tied as the most-admired woman.

The close finish by Clinton, named by 16% in the open-ended survey, and Palin, named by 15%, reflects the nation's partisan split. Clinton was cited by almost 3 in 10 Democrats but only 6% of Republicans, Palin by a third of Republicans but less than 1% of Democrats.

First lady Michelle Obama ranks as the fourth most-admired woman, at the back Oprah Winfrey.The poll of 1,025 adults, taken Dec. 11-13, has a edge of error of +/–4 percentage points.