Bush approval at lowest level of his presidency

[leftchick]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9332076/

WASHINGTON — Rocked by Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath, record-high gas prices, and the continued debate over Iraq, President George W. Bush’s public standing has sunk to new lows, the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds.

Bush's approval rating has declined to its lowest level in his presidency. So has his handling of the situation in Iraq. Moreover, fewer than half those surveyed approve of the way in which Bush has dealt with the hurricane, and a whopping three-fourths believe the United States is not prepared for a nuclear, biological or chemical attack.

“The president has been living on the edge for the last 18 months,” said Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart, referring to Bush’s approval rating, which until recently had held steady at or just below 50 percent since 2004.

Recent events take toll
But Hart notes that recent events, especially Hurricane Katrina, have taken a toll on Bush. “What happened out of all of this is that the personal characteristics that had been holding the president up basically burst,” he said.

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

1. From the same poll: Even more interesting for W's "agenda"

<snip>

Iraq versus domestic concerns
After Katrina, 75 percent now believe the United States is not adequately prepared for a nuclear, biological or chemical attack. That’s an increase since June 2002, nine months after Sept. 11, when 66 percent believed this.

When asked to choose between rebuilding Iraq and establishing a democratic government there or rebuilding New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, 60 percent of respondents said New Orleans is the greater priority, while just 5 percent mentioned Iraq. Thirty-four percent said both are equally important.

On a somewhat similar note, 45 percent believe that reducing spending on the Iraq war is one or two actions that should be taken to pay for the Katrina relief efforts. That’s followed by 27 percent who want to repeal tax cuts, 12 percent who want to cut federal spending in other areas (such as education), 8 percent who want to increase the deficit and 7 percent who want to raise income taxes.

[AX10]

4. KICK

The people are awakening.

[Tight_rope]

29. How can we prepare for a nuclear, biological or chemical attacks...

when the stupid fuckers in charge can't even alert and evacuate the people in advance to knowing that a Cat 5 hurricane is coming their way.

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

31. That's the $64000 question isn't it...puts it all right on the table

All this talk and money spent to 'make us safe' proved to be just pork and cronyism.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

61. prepare?

why, the very same way that the president responded to a CIA daily briefing entitled, "Terrorists intent on striking US mainland" by scheduling a vacation and updating his reading material in public.

[niceypoo]

35. What they need to ask is "Do you feel safer than before Bush took office?"

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

39. YES! And the Dems should be asking this publicly NOW.

Don't you agree?

[katty]

38. 'not adequately prepared'?! no s***!!How many more disasters do

you REQUIRE AMERICA TO GET IT??!!!

[JuniperLea]

2. America is at it's lowest level

since Bush took office... and I do mean TOOK office.

Bush is so weak and feeble minded, and he clearly has an addictive personality, I'm betting he has some sort of breakdown once reality kicks him in the ass.

[Radio_Lady]

3. I don't know what personal characteristics were there in the first place,

Mr. Hart.

This was essentially a brainless suit walking (OK, sometimes * donned a flight suit ) with NO Heart.

How come other people didn't see it? I DID...

Maybe we'll start to see some ACTION to get rid of this clueless dud of a pResident...

[Pirate Smile]

5. He is at 40%. You had to read quite a while to actually find the ##'s.

"“The president has been living on the edge for the last 18 months,� said Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart, referring to Bush’s approval rating, which until recently had held steady at or just below 50 percent since 2004.

Recent events take toll
But Hart notes that recent events, especially Hurricane Katrina, have taken a toll on Bush. “What happened out of all of this is that the personal characteristics that had been holding the president up basically burst,� he said.

According to the poll, Bush’s job approval has plummeted to 40 percent, an all-time low for the president. That’s a drop of 6 points from the NBC/Wall Street Journal poll taken in July, and it’s consistent with results from other recent national surveys. The poll also finds that just 37 percent of respondents approve of Bush’s job handling Iraq, compared with 58 percent who disapprove — another all-time low. In addition, 55 percent want to reduce the number of troops in Iraq, while just 36 percent want to maintain the current level there."

[alarcojon]

6. He's hovering right at 40

and I recall a post a few days back mentioning that his "strongly disapprove" numbers were 40. The 40% includes his weak support, which is peeling off by the minute.

[VegasWolf]

7. Stay the course!! nt

[fshrink]

8. Those who were stupid or assholes enough

to even consider approving the Idiot can be made to approve him again because of anything, at any time, and at low cost. Fact is, nearly half of this country, give or take a few percents, belongs to that category.

[VegasWolf]

9. The notorious Bell Curve of Intelligence? nt

[fshrink]

11. No, but when you foster stupidity, it grows. nt

[VegasWolf]

14. LOL. You implying that the mean decreases and the standard deviation

increases when people have no guiding intelligence role models?

[fshrink]

18. I'm saying

when you're not taught to think critically, when you're conditioned to believe in fairy-tales, when you're repeatedly fed minimal amounts of fabricated data, and so on, you actually become, operationally as it were, the equivalent of an idiot. Where you are on the curve doesn't really matter.

[VegasWolf]

19. Yeah, but OTOH if one is gifted one doesn't rely solely on sources

of fabricated data but would rather use a larger universe of data. It seems to me that the less gifted rely on smaller and smaller subsets of data, until it reaches the ultimate low of what your spouse thinks determines your course of action.

Interesting.

:toast:

[fshrink]

21. A Ferrari without gas is slower than a bicycle. nt

[VegasWolf]

23. True! but in this case the "gas" is global scientific information!

How bad can Bush impede the world body of knowledge? He is powerfully stupid, but THAT stupid?

:toast:

[fshrink]

26. Explain that to an average American child.

The gas is critical thinking, knowledge, creativity, words, syntax. Not bacon-burger, Holy Spaghetti and hooked-on-phonics. The Idiot is not the source, he is the product. Just like the other xx%. Which is largely why they approve him.

[VegasWolf]

32. I can't explain THAT to the average Murikan child. That is why I'm

so hosed!!!

:)

[leftchick]

20. very true

yet I still believe there is some padding in these polls.

[patdem]

16. OR the polls can be swung if the corporate media want us to believe

he is a 'popular' president? Maybe bush** is a puppet..and maybe he is just the empty suit...his question to O'Neill says maybe he COULD care if given the information..."Didn't we just give the rich a tax cut?"...So therefore..Cheney and his minions have to take over. WHY is corporate media suddenly turning against bush**? As much as I do not trust this administration...I certainly do not trust the corporate media either. SUCH A DILEMMA!

[Pirate Smile]

44. But the RW chain letters tell them the truth and everything else just

lies to them. :eyes:

[yorkiemommie1]

49. they'll give him a bump up after tomorrow's speech

because they will decide that he is 'decisive' and ' compassionate '

again.

[mahina]

10. It still baffles me how 40% of Americans can even look at this man.

I can't even watch him on the news, he is such a perversion of what a president is supposed to be. How is it possible that 40% of our people don't see he is an imbecile who is raping our country!

Seriously, how?

Even here in traditionally blue Hawaii, he is accepted. He should be...prosecuted.

[Tiggeroshii]

12. If it could just drop ten more points..

That'll guarantee him from having any sorta comeback. I think.

[The_Casual_Observer]

13. My approval rating of bush has been zero% since 2000.

What is taking all these people so long?

[Tight_rope]

33. Mine has been -99% since he was governor here.

[texpatriot2004]

15. Well well well, gotta love that.

snip

"According to the poll, Bush’s job approval has plummeted to 40 percent, an all-time low for the president. That’s a drop of 6 points from the NBC/Wall Street Journal poll taken in July, and it’s consistent with results from other recent national surveys. The poll also finds that just 37 percent of respondents approve of Bush’s job handling Iraq, compared with 58 percent who disapprove — another all-time low. In addition, 55 percent want to reduce the number of troops in Iraq, while just 36 percent want to maintain the current level there."

snip

[MadisonProgressive]

17. Bush is de bomb!

:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[Martin Eden]

22. If his approval was 4% instead of 40%

I'd still be wondering how THAT many Americans could be so utterly clueless.

[Iris]

25. lol!

:toast:

[Infomaniac]

24. My favorite part

Overall, both pollsters — the Democrat Hart and the Republican McInturff — say this survey doesn’t provide much good news for the Bush White House. But McInturff argues that it’s premature to close the book on Bush’s second term, pointing out that Bill Clinton was able to bounce back after the Monica Lewinsky scandal, and that Ronald Reagan was able to do the same after Iran-Contra.

“Three years is a long, long time,” McInturff said. “Given what’s happened in this year alone, who knows what will happen in the next three years.”


Sorry, Mr. McInturff, this is George Dubya Bush here. He doesn't have the charisma of a Reagan or Clinton. He's an empty suit and a prime example of what happens when affirmative action is used to promote spoiled, rich fratboys. The place goes to pot. The really scary part is the next paragraph. Yeah, who knows what will happen in the next three years? I don't think Lady Luck is going to change for this doofus. This is just the start of his fall. It's only a matter of time before the wheels come off this bus. These morons are the Bad News Busheviks.

[lancdem]

43. And Clinton's approval rating was in the 60s during Monica

What I like to look at in these polls is not just the approval number but how much the number is below the previous low. In this poll, his low before was 45 percent - we're talking a 5-point drop, which is pretty big.

This is more proof that CNN poll was bullshit. His approval is between 38 and 42 percent, period.

[yorkiemommie1]

50. ' three years is a long, long time '

yer tellin' me, Mc!

[AlCzervik]

27. 40% on a WSJ poll---staggering!! I like it!

[ChairmanAgnostic]

37. OK you are chimpy. what does that mean to you?

40% Great. I have a mandate. I can change this country and pass my social insecurotting bills and I can go back on vacation. The other 60%? Rovie will take care of them.

[OrangeCountyDemocrat]

42. What I Would Say If I Were Shrub.....

I got the supreme court to appoint me in 2000, and Diebold enabled me to be re-elected in '04, so I could care less what anybody thinks....let alone the average american.

Oh, by the way....I'm not running for office again, so I care even less than I used to.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

62. I think our discussion is poorly framed.

there are 60% of Americans who do NOT support the president, his policies, his staffing decisions, his approach and his abilities.

THAT is the way we need to argue it.

[AtomicKitten]

28. I just watched the 9-11 2-part series.

I knew junior screwed up, but he did it BIG TIME prior to 9/11, and the fact that he was on vacation when the PDB came, the one that mentioned bin Laden and hijackings, parallels his inattention to Katrina. I think the disaster de jour really causes one to reflect on all the other disasters under BushCo that were simply smoothed over and swept under the carpet. And now with the Repubs failing to endorse an independent investigation, I doubt very seriously even Karl Rove could spin their way out of this. Or least I hope not.

[sniffa]

30. 40?

what happened to 36-38? different poLLs?

[NYC Liberal]

47. Yes, different polls.

[VegasWolf]

34. Bush, "I'll take the responsibility, NOT the blame!" nt

[Lugnut]

36. He finally did it

He beat his old man at something. :sarcasm:

[0007]

40. Just a little prelude to what's coming down the road.

[struggle4progress]

41. "Bushie, yer doin a helluva jobba sorts."

[SIU_Blue]

45. Hi all!

Can 40% of this country really still have confidence in him????

:shrug:

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

48. Welcome to DU

Either still drinking the Rapturist Right Koolaid or are still too stubborn to admit they made a mistake.

[yorkiemommie1]

51. hi !

and sadly, yes.

:hi:

[leftchick]

52. have faith

this is one of the most conservative repuke sources for polling there is. Chimpy is TOAST!

Welcome to DU SIU Blue!

:)

[sweetheart]

46. overexposure

It was just a matter of time, and soon the republicans and their lies
will be the bedrock for the next several decades of lampooning losers.

Media managers these fools never were.

[faithnotgreed]

53. i took this poll - glad to see it released

[boddhi]

54. and just wait until Sept 24th

When we all march in the name of peace - y'all will be there, right? If not in DC, then in your neighborhoods......

[Bassic]

57. Bring some vinegar guys

Cause, believe me, tear gas is not fun.

[raccoon]

59. What does the vinegar reference mean? nt

[Bassic]

60. Sort of helps with the burning.

Water just makes it worse, but vinegars sor of makes it better. Untill the next cloud.

[patricia92243]

55. His numbers are where they would have always been if there were no 9/11.

He got "smart" only after 9/11. He was an ACKNOWLEDGED failure before 9/11. The only difference was that he became an un-acknowledged failure after 9/11.

[Moderator]

56. kick

[Naipes]

58. Be sure to give that story a FIVE STAR rating

At then end of the article there is an opportunity to rate the story. Give it 5 stars!

[tanyev]

63. Nonsense.

There's still three years to go. I'm expecting to see it go much lower.