the 50 point drop
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<font size="5"><center>Poll Finds Bush Job Rating at New Low</font size>
<font size="4">An Election-Year Blow to the GOP</font size></center>
Washington Post
By Richard Morin and Claudia Deane
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, April 11, 2006; Page A01
Political reversals at home and continued bad news from Iraq have dragged President Bush's standing with the public to a new low, at the same time that Republican fortunes on Capitol Hill also are deteriorating, according to the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll.
The survey found that 38 percent of the public approve of the job Bush is doing, down three percentage points in the past month and his worst showing in Post-ABC polling since he became president. Sixty percent disapprove of his performance.
With less than seven months remaining before the midterm elections, Bush's political troubles already appear to be casting a long shadow over them. Barely a third of registered voters, 35 percent, approve of the way the Republican-led Congress is doing its job -- the lowest level of support in nine years.
The negative judgments about the president and the congressional majority reflect the breadth of the GOP's difficulties and suggest that the problems of each may be mutually reinforcing. Although the numbers do not represent a precipitous decline over recent surveys, the fact that they have stayed at low levels over recent months indicates that the GOP is confronting some fundamental obstacles with public opinion rather than a patch of bad luck.
A majority of registered voters, 55 percent, say they plan to vote for the Democratic candidate in their House district, while 40 percent support the Republican candidate. That is the largest share of the electorate favoring Democrats in Post-ABC polls since the mid-1980s.
This grim news for the GOP is offset somewhat by the finding that 59 percent of voters still say they approve of their own representative. But even these numbers are weaker than in recent off-year election cycles and identical to support of congressional incumbents in June 1994 -- five months before Democrats lost control of Congress to Republicans.
As Bush and the Republicans falter, Democrats have emerged as the party most Americans trust to deal with such issues as Iraq, the economy and health care. By 49 to 42 percent, Americans trust Democrats more than Republicans to do a better job of handling Iraq.
Democrats also hold a six-percentage-point advantage over the GOP (49 percent to 43 percent) as the party most trusted to handle the economy. Their lead swells to double digits on such as issues as immigration (12 points), prescription drug benefits for the elderly (28 points), health care (32 points) and dealing with corruption in Washington (25 points).
The public divides evenly on only one issue: terrorism, with 46 percent expressing more confidence in the Democrats and 45 percent trusting Republicans on a top voting concern that the GOP counts on dominating.
But there is plenty of time left before Election Day for Republicans to take back ground they have lost to Democrats -- or for Democrats to solidify their recent gains. In the past year, public attitudes toward Bush and the Republicans have been driven by the news. Bush's popularity rebounded at the end of last year in response to the democratic elections in Iraq and renewed optimism about the economy at home -- only to stumble as the deadly insurgency continued and scandals in Congress and the White House drove down perceptions of the president and his party.
A total of 1,027 randomly selected adults were interviewed April 6 to 9 for this survey. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus three percentage points for the overall results.
Bush's job approval rating has remained below 50 percent for nearly a year. Perhaps more ominous for the president, 47 percent in the latest poll say they "strongly" disapprove of Bush's handling of the presidency -- more than double the 20 percent who strongly approve. It marked the second straight month that the proportion of Americans intensely critical of the president was larger than his overall job approval rating. In comparison, the percentage who strongly disapproved of President Bill Clinton on that measure never exceeded 33 percent in Post-ABC News polls.
The public is even more critical of Bush's performance in specific areas. On six of seven key issues, fewer than half of the respondents approve of the job Bush is doing, while majorities express dissatisfaction with him on Iraq (62 percent), health care (62 percent) and immigration (61 percent).
Four in 10 -- 40 percent -- say Bush is doing a good job with the economy, down eight percentage points in a month. One reason for the drop may be the recent sharp increase in fuel costs. Fewer than one in four approve of his handling of gasoline prices, virtually the same as last summer when gas prices topped $3 a gallon. Overall, 44 percent said the increases are causing "serious hardship" in their family, up significantly from August.
Half of the public now disapproves of the way Bush is handling the fight against terrorism, an issue on which majorities of Americans had typically given him high marks until last year.
The depth of public dissatisfaction with Bush and the highly partisan nature of the criticism are underscored by public attitudes toward efforts by some in Congress to censure him or impeach him for his actions as president.
Democratic and Republican congressional leaders view both scenarios as remote possibilities. Still, more than four in 10 Americans -- 45 percent -- favor censuring or formally reprimanding Bush for authorizing wiretaps of telephone calls and e-mails of terrorism suspects without court permission. Two-thirds of Democrats and half of all independents, but only one in six Republicans, support censuring Bush, the poll found.
Last month, Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) introduced a resolution in the Senate to censure Bush. A majority of Americans, 56 percent, said his move was driven more by politics than by principle.
Calls to impeach Bush are not resonating beyond Democratic partisans. One-third of Americans, including a majority of Democrats (55 percent), favor impeaching Bush and removing him from office. But more than nine in 10 Republicans and two-thirds of independents oppose impeachment.
The ongoing bloodshed and political chaos in Iraq continue to drag down support for the war, the survey found. Barely four in 10 -- 41 percent -- say the war is worth fighting, down five percentage points since December. Although more than half of Americans think troop levels in Iraq should be decreased, only 15 percent are calling for an immediate withdrawal, a figure that has not varied much over the past year.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...6041000259.html?referrer=email&referrer=email
<font size="4">An Election-Year Blow to the GOP</font size></center>
Washington Post
By Richard Morin and Claudia Deane
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, April 11, 2006; Page A01
Political reversals at home and continued bad news from Iraq have dragged President Bush's standing with the public to a new low, at the same time that Republican fortunes on Capitol Hill also are deteriorating, according to the latest Washington Post-ABC News poll.
The survey found that 38 percent of the public approve of the job Bush is doing, down three percentage points in the past month and his worst showing in Post-ABC polling since he became president. Sixty percent disapprove of his performance.
With less than seven months remaining before the midterm elections, Bush's political troubles already appear to be casting a long shadow over them. Barely a third of registered voters, 35 percent, approve of the way the Republican-led Congress is doing its job -- the lowest level of support in nine years.
The negative judgments about the president and the congressional majority reflect the breadth of the GOP's difficulties and suggest that the problems of each may be mutually reinforcing. Although the numbers do not represent a precipitous decline over recent surveys, the fact that they have stayed at low levels over recent months indicates that the GOP is confronting some fundamental obstacles with public opinion rather than a patch of bad luck.
A majority of registered voters, 55 percent, say they plan to vote for the Democratic candidate in their House district, while 40 percent support the Republican candidate. That is the largest share of the electorate favoring Democrats in Post-ABC polls since the mid-1980s.
This grim news for the GOP is offset somewhat by the finding that 59 percent of voters still say they approve of their own representative. But even these numbers are weaker than in recent off-year election cycles and identical to support of congressional incumbents in June 1994 -- five months before Democrats lost control of Congress to Republicans.
As Bush and the Republicans falter, Democrats have emerged as the party most Americans trust to deal with such issues as Iraq, the economy and health care. By 49 to 42 percent, Americans trust Democrats more than Republicans to do a better job of handling Iraq.
Democrats also hold a six-percentage-point advantage over the GOP (49 percent to 43 percent) as the party most trusted to handle the economy. Their lead swells to double digits on such as issues as immigration (12 points), prescription drug benefits for the elderly (28 points), health care (32 points) and dealing with corruption in Washington (25 points).
The public divides evenly on only one issue: terrorism, with 46 percent expressing more confidence in the Democrats and 45 percent trusting Republicans on a top voting concern that the GOP counts on dominating.
But there is plenty of time left before Election Day for Republicans to take back ground they have lost to Democrats -- or for Democrats to solidify their recent gains. In the past year, public attitudes toward Bush and the Republicans have been driven by the news. Bush's popularity rebounded at the end of last year in response to the democratic elections in Iraq and renewed optimism about the economy at home -- only to stumble as the deadly insurgency continued and scandals in Congress and the White House drove down perceptions of the president and his party.
A total of 1,027 randomly selected adults were interviewed April 6 to 9 for this survey. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus three percentage points for the overall results.
Bush's job approval rating has remained below 50 percent for nearly a year. Perhaps more ominous for the president, 47 percent in the latest poll say they "strongly" disapprove of Bush's handling of the presidency -- more than double the 20 percent who strongly approve. It marked the second straight month that the proportion of Americans intensely critical of the president was larger than his overall job approval rating. In comparison, the percentage who strongly disapproved of President Bill Clinton on that measure never exceeded 33 percent in Post-ABC News polls.
The public is even more critical of Bush's performance in specific areas. On six of seven key issues, fewer than half of the respondents approve of the job Bush is doing, while majorities express dissatisfaction with him on Iraq (62 percent), health care (62 percent) and immigration (61 percent).
Four in 10 -- 40 percent -- say Bush is doing a good job with the economy, down eight percentage points in a month. One reason for the drop may be the recent sharp increase in fuel costs. Fewer than one in four approve of his handling of gasoline prices, virtually the same as last summer when gas prices topped $3 a gallon. Overall, 44 percent said the increases are causing "serious hardship" in their family, up significantly from August.
Half of the public now disapproves of the way Bush is handling the fight against terrorism, an issue on which majorities of Americans had typically given him high marks until last year.
The depth of public dissatisfaction with Bush and the highly partisan nature of the criticism are underscored by public attitudes toward efforts by some in Congress to censure him or impeach him for his actions as president.
Democratic and Republican congressional leaders view both scenarios as remote possibilities. Still, more than four in 10 Americans -- 45 percent -- favor censuring or formally reprimanding Bush for authorizing wiretaps of telephone calls and e-mails of terrorism suspects without court permission. Two-thirds of Democrats and half of all independents, but only one in six Republicans, support censuring Bush, the poll found.
Last month, Sen. Russell Feingold (D-Wis.) introduced a resolution in the Senate to censure Bush. A majority of Americans, 56 percent, said his move was driven more by politics than by principle.
Calls to impeach Bush are not resonating beyond Democratic partisans. One-third of Americans, including a majority of Democrats (55 percent), favor impeaching Bush and removing him from office. But more than nine in 10 Republicans and two-thirds of independents oppose impeachment.
The ongoing bloodshed and political chaos in Iraq continue to drag down support for the war, the survey found. Barely four in 10 -- 41 percent -- say the war is worth fighting, down five percentage points since December. Although more than half of Americans think troop levels in Iraq should be decreased, only 15 percent are calling for an immediate withdrawal, a figure that has not varied much over the past year.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...6041000259.html?referrer=email&referrer=email
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<font size="5"><center>Bush political problems may have no quick fix</font size></center>
Reuters
Sun May 14, 2006 11:18am ET
By Caren Bohan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A long, slow slide in President George W. Bush's popularity ratings over the past year to a low of around 30 percent suggests there may be no quick fix for his political woes.
Six weeks after Bush began a staff shakeup aimed at reinvigorating his presidency, his popularity has only fallen further. While a Newsweek poll released this weekend showed Bush's approval rating at 35 percent, three other surveys last week put it at between 29 and 31 percent.
Political scientist Terry Madonna of Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania said Bush has lost an average of one percentage point in popularity each month since February 2005.
"Barring some huge changes or demonstrations of success, it's hard to imagine this president pulling a rabbit out of a hat," Madonna said.
Bush on Monday will address the nation on immigration reform and is expected to announce measures to tighten controls along the Mexican border, possibly by dispatching National Guard troops, a move long advocated by conservatives. But one speech alone is unlikely to turn things around.
"There is no simple answer," said Ken Mayer, professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin. "There is almost nothing a president can do in the short term to pump up his poll numbers."
In late March, with his approval ratings in the high 30s, Bush replaced his longtime chief of staff Andy Card with budget chief Joshua Bolten, the first of several senior staff changes. Some Republicans thought the shakeup came a year too late.
With congressional mid-term elections less than six months away, Republicans increasingly fear Bush's unpopularity could drag them down and allow Democrats to regain control of one or both houses of Congress.
Unabated violence in Iraq is seen inside and outside the White House as Bush's biggest problem. On the home front, high gasoline prices and rising health care costs have stirred anxiety and pessimism among working Americans, overshadowing good news about the broad state of the economy.
Recent White House staff changes have included narrowing the policy role of White House strategist Karl Rove, hiring Fox News anchor Tony Snow as press secretary and ousting Porter Goss as CIA director.
While the White House aides never expected these changes to dramatically cure Bush's problems, they hoped they might at least stabilize the situation and create new momentum.
Madonna said Bush badly needed to stop the erosion, which was now eating into support from his core conservative, Republican constituency. But even if he succeeds in that, a substantial rebound may be a longshot.
Another worry within the White House is that Bush, who has two-and-a-half years left in office, is heading rapidly toward "lame duck" status in which he will have limited leverage to influence the domestic debate in Congress, especially if Democrats win control of Congress in November.
Most worrisome for Bush, his latest approval figures are among the lowest measured for any president in the past 50 years. His father, former President George H.W. Bush, saw his approval drop to similar levels before being defeated in the 1992 presidential election.
Jimmy Carter, at the height of the energy crisis and the Iran hostage drama in the late 1970s had a rating of 28 percent while Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal saw his approval drop to 23 percent. Neither recovered substantially.
The all-time low in presidency approval was Harry Truman's 22 percent in February 1952. Truman is now seen as one of the country's great presidents.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsa...=&cap=&sz=13&WTModLoc=NewsArt-C1-ArticlePage2
Reuters
Sun May 14, 2006 11:18am ET
By Caren Bohan
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A long, slow slide in President George W. Bush's popularity ratings over the past year to a low of around 30 percent suggests there may be no quick fix for his political woes.
Six weeks after Bush began a staff shakeup aimed at reinvigorating his presidency, his popularity has only fallen further. While a Newsweek poll released this weekend showed Bush's approval rating at 35 percent, three other surveys last week put it at between 29 and 31 percent.
Political scientist Terry Madonna of Franklin and Marshall College in Pennsylvania said Bush has lost an average of one percentage point in popularity each month since February 2005.
"Barring some huge changes or demonstrations of success, it's hard to imagine this president pulling a rabbit out of a hat," Madonna said.
Bush on Monday will address the nation on immigration reform and is expected to announce measures to tighten controls along the Mexican border, possibly by dispatching National Guard troops, a move long advocated by conservatives. But one speech alone is unlikely to turn things around.
"There is no simple answer," said Ken Mayer, professor of political science at the University of Wisconsin. "There is almost nothing a president can do in the short term to pump up his poll numbers."
In late March, with his approval ratings in the high 30s, Bush replaced his longtime chief of staff Andy Card with budget chief Joshua Bolten, the first of several senior staff changes. Some Republicans thought the shakeup came a year too late.
With congressional mid-term elections less than six months away, Republicans increasingly fear Bush's unpopularity could drag them down and allow Democrats to regain control of one or both houses of Congress.
Unabated violence in Iraq is seen inside and outside the White House as Bush's biggest problem. On the home front, high gasoline prices and rising health care costs have stirred anxiety and pessimism among working Americans, overshadowing good news about the broad state of the economy.
Recent White House staff changes have included narrowing the policy role of White House strategist Karl Rove, hiring Fox News anchor Tony Snow as press secretary and ousting Porter Goss as CIA director.
While the White House aides never expected these changes to dramatically cure Bush's problems, they hoped they might at least stabilize the situation and create new momentum.
Madonna said Bush badly needed to stop the erosion, which was now eating into support from his core conservative, Republican constituency. But even if he succeeds in that, a substantial rebound may be a longshot.
Another worry within the White House is that Bush, who has two-and-a-half years left in office, is heading rapidly toward "lame duck" status in which he will have limited leverage to influence the domestic debate in Congress, especially if Democrats win control of Congress in November.
Most worrisome for Bush, his latest approval figures are among the lowest measured for any president in the past 50 years. His father, former President George H.W. Bush, saw his approval drop to similar levels before being defeated in the 1992 presidential election.
Jimmy Carter, at the height of the energy crisis and the Iran hostage drama in the late 1970s had a rating of 28 percent while Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal saw his approval drop to 23 percent. Neither recovered substantially.
The all-time low in presidency approval was Harry Truman's 22 percent in February 1952. Truman is now seen as one of the country's great presidents.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsa...=&cap=&sz=13&WTModLoc=NewsArt-C1-ArticlePage2
The drop is because there are over 2400 dead GI's in Iraq and there prolly won't be a letup anytime soon. Add that to the fact Iraq is in turmoil after the Admin promised the American people this would be a quick and easy campaign and people will lose faith in the President. Bush biggest mistake was not listening to Powell or giving him Rumsfield's job but that is water under the bridge what he has to do now is correct his ship and he can do that by catching OBL and setting up a real govt. in Iraq if he does that and gas prices drop as predicted G.W. will come out of this smelling like a rose.
None of the above really matters at this point , i will tell you why, United States is so far in debt, at this point that it's just a matter of time till we experience a full collapse of all governmental operations/systems.
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