Bush's Approval Sinking

According to a CBS News/NY Times
poll, Bush's approval rating is hovering at around 50%. Karl Rove knows
that as soon as it dips into the 40s, the media will smell blood in the
water and if that happens it's all over. The SOTU address tomorrow will
probably give Bush a bump that'll last a couple of weeks, but it's a
looooong way until the Republican National Convention in August.
Hopefully this trend will continue:

After rising in public support following the capture of
Saddam Hussein, the President gives his State of the Union message next
week with a decidedly less positive audience. His approval rating of
50% matches his lowest approval ratings ever, and the largest number
ever � 45% - disapprove.
This decline (from 60% approval the week after Saddam�s capture)
comes after former Treasury Secretary Paul O�Neill�s criticisms of
the Administration in a book and in interviews, and after continuing
attacks on American troops in Iraq. And there is other bad news for the
President.

• Less than half now approve of how he is handling the situation in Iraq. 51% say the war was not worth the costs.

• Two of the President�s just-launched initiatives have met
  with negative public assessment. Most Americans oppose temporary work
  permits for illegal immigrants and don�t think a permanent space
  station on the moon is worth it.
• Just 41% say the President has the same priorities on the issues they do.

• Only 30% say he is more interested in protecting the interests
  of ordinary Americans than in protecting the interests of large
  corporations. Just 39% -- fewer than before -- have confidence in his
  ability to make the right economic decisions.

Update
Just to make it absolutely clear, these are the poll results (numbers in parens represent change from last poll):

CBS News/NYT 1/17
Approve: 50 (-10)
Disapprove: 45 (+12)

All this in spite of the fact that Bush is now a visionary!

Posted by flow Frazao on January 19, 2004 at 10:58 AM | Permalink