2009 Nobel Peace Prize when asked if they were personally glad that Obama won the award, 46% of respondents said they were and 47% said they were not glad (poll margin of error +/-3%). There was widespread criticism of the Nobel Committee's decision from commentators and editorial writers across the political spectrum. "The New York Times" published a mildly-supportive editorial which said the prize was "a (barely) implicit condemnation of Mr. Bush's presidency. But countering the ill will Mr. Bush created around the world is one of Mr. Obama's great achievements in less than nine months in office. Mr. Obama's willingness to respect and
Nobel Peace Prize Norway has been able to use the prize as an instrument for nation building and furthering Norway's foreign policy and economic interests. In another 2011 "Aftenposten" opinion article, the grandson of one of Nobel's two brothers, Michael Nobel, also criticised what he believed to be the politicisation of the award, claiming that the Nobel Committee has not always acted in accordance with Nobel's will. Norwegian lawyer Fredrik S. Heffermehl has criticized the management of the Peace Prize. The awards given to Mikhail Gorbachev, Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres, Menachem Begin and Yasser Arafat, Lê Đức Thọ, Henry Kissinger, Jimmy Carter, Al