Lowest of the Low

[Superlative]

Bush's popularity hits new low

The public approval rating for the US president has hit an all-time low of 28 per cent and nearly two-thirds of Americans think George Bush is "stubborn and unwilling to admit his mistakes"...........

The poll, conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International on Wednesday and Thursday, interviewed 1,001 adults 18 and older.

.......The Newsweek poll released on Saturday found Bush's rating one percentage point lower than his father at the lowest point in his term in office.

Almost 62 per cent of Americans disapprove of Bush's execution of the Iraq war, while 30 per cent think his actions show he is "willing to take political risks" to do what is right, Newsweek reported.
The last US leader to be as unpopular as Bush was Jimmy Carter who also scored 28 per cent in 1979 in the wake of the Iran hostage crisis.

Bush burden

Bush's unpopularity may hurt Republican hopes of keeping the White House in 2008.

The poll also suggested that Democratic frontrunners have a promising lead over potential Republican contenders across the board, with Barack Obama, the Illinois senator, recording the best performance so far.

Obama bested Rudolph Giuliani, the Republican frontrunner and former New York mayor, by 50 per cent to 43 per cent among registered voters who responded to the Newsweek poll.

He also topped John McCain, the Arizona senator, by 52 per cent to 39 per cent and defeated Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, by 58 per cent to 29 per cent, the poll indicated.

The other popular Democratic candidate, Hillary Clinton, who is New York senator, topped Giuliani by 49 per cent to 46 per cent, and beat McCain by 50 per cent to 44 per cent.

She led Romney by 57 per cent to 35 per cent, the poll found.

It had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/649A503F-E92F-43C8-B255-A59A348D6ECA.htm

 

[Vintij]

I knew he would drop lower than Carter. Surprised I am, that it came so early in his final term. I was expecting it to be next year after the failure of the surge and the Iraqi constitution.

This means that when his surge is regarded as a failure, and he predicitbly denies his failure with another stubborn rant about how "things are getting better on the ground"......then perhaps he will break the record for lowest approval ratings. I feel sorry for his wife, she has to put up with his stubborn ass for the rest of her life.

Laura Bush= "george can you please take out the trash, its overflowing with mold."

George W.= "Laura, you have to understand that im the decider, and I believe conditions on the ground are getting better every day. We cant just pull out the trash and tell our garbage when we plan to surrender. We have to stay the course and allow the trash to work itself out. Thank you, and god bless you laura."

 

[Mace]

Not suprising. What will be interesting is to see if his very low popularity ratings are held against the repubs in the next prez election. His presidency may do a lot to hand the dems a victory if they put up even a halfway good candidate.

 

[Superlative]

It all depends on how the next year goes.

If the surge works and conservatives gain some kind of control in Iraq, the Republicans stand a chance in the election.

If soldiers keep dying and Iraqi'a keep exploding it looks good for the Dems.

Only time till will tell, and only one side will look good to the voters.

Unless they work together toward a solution.

 

[Dirt McGirt]

Not suprising. What will be interesting is to see if his very low popularity ratings are held against the repubs in the next prez election. His presidency may do a lot to hand the dems a victory if they put up even a halfway good candidate.

At this point the political hacks are saying no. But I think it depends on the candidate. Someone who sounds like Bush and says they'd further his Iraq and immigration policies are going to get killed.

 

[Dirt McGirt]

It all depends on how the next year goes.

If the surge works and conservatives gain some kind of control in Iraq, the Republicans stand a chance in the election.

If soldiers keep dying and Iraqi'a keep exploding it looks good for the Dems.

Only time till will tell, and only one side will look good to the voters.

Unless they work together toward a solution.

You're correct. Iraq is one of the major issues tied to Bush. When things go well in Iraq, he gets a small bump in the polls; when they go badly, they go down.

 

[Dirt McGirt]

Wait....why are you posting from al-jazzera???


NEWSWEEK Poll: Bush Hits All-Time Low
George W. Bush has the lowest presidential approval rating in a generation, and the leading Dems beat every major ’08 Republican. Coincidence?WEB By Marcus Mabry
Newsweek
Updated: 9:31 a.m. CT May 5, 2007

May 5, 2007 - It’s hard to say which is worse news for Republicans: that George W. Bush now has the worst approval rating of an American president in a generation, or that he seems to be dragging every ’08 Republican presidential candidate down with him. But According to the new NEWSWEEK Poll, the public’s approval of Bush has sunk to 28 percent, an all-time low for this president in our poll, and a point lower than Gallup recorded for his father at Bush Sr.’s nadir. The last president to be this unpopular was Jimmy Carter who also scored a 28 percent approval in 1979. This remarkably low rating seems to be casting a dark shadow over the GOP’s chances for victory in ’08. The NEWSWEEK Poll finds each of the leading Democratic contenders beating the Republican frontrunners in head-to-head matchups.

Perhaps that explains why Republican candidates, participating in their first major debate this week, mentioned Bush’s name only once, but Ronald Reagan’s 19 times. (The debate was held at Reagan’s presidential library.)

When the NEWSWEEK Poll asked more than 1,000 adults on Wednesday and Thursday night (before and during the GOP debate) which president showed the greatest political courage—meaning being brave enough to make the right decisions for the country, even if it jeopardized his popularity —more respondents volunteered Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton (18 percent each) than any other president. Fourteen percent of adults named John F. Kennedy and 10 percent said Abraham Lincoln. Only four percent mentioned George W. Bush. (Then again, only five percent volunteered Franklin Roosevelt and only three percent said George Washington.)

A majority of Americans believe Bush is not politically courageous: 55 percent vs. 40 percent. And nearly two out of three Americans (62 percent) believe his recent actions in Iraq show he is “stubborn and unwilling to admit his mistakes,” compared to 30 percent who say Bush’s actions demonstrate that he is “willing to take political risks to do what’s right.”

Former New York City major Rudolph Giuliani receives the highest marks for having shown political courage in the past among the current major candidates from either party (48 percent of registered voters say he has), followed by Hillary Clinton at 43 percent, John McCain at 42, John Edwards at 33 and Barack Obama at 30. Mitt Romney comes in last among the six leading candidates at 11 percent.

Clinton receives the highest marks for showing political courage in the current campaign, though, with 34 percent of voters saying she has, followed by 33 percent for Obama, 30 percent for Edwards, 28 for McCain, 25 for Giuliani and 11 for Romney.

Obama is seen as the most optimistic candidate (a consistent measure of electability) in either party: 51 percent of registered voters say the Illinois senator is optimistic, compared to 47 percent who say Edwards is, 46 percent for Clinton, 45 percent for Giuliani, 40 percent for McCain, and 27 for Romney.

While the poll has some high marks for Clinton, it’s not all good news. Though the New York senator and former first lady aims to project an aura of inevitability that she will win the Democratic nomination, Obama beats the leading Republicans by larger margins than any other Democrat: besting Giuliani 50 to 43 percent, among registered voters; beating McCain 52 to 39 percent, and defeating Romney 58 percent to 29 percent.

Like Obama, Edwards defeats the Republicans by larger margins than Clinton does: the former Democratic vice-presidential nominee outdistances Giuliani by six points, McCain by 10 and Romney by 37, the largest lead in any of the head-to-head matchups. Meanwhile, Sen. Clinton wins 49 percent to 46 percent against Giuliani, well within the poll’s margin of error; 50 to 44 against McCain; and 57 to 35 against Romney.

Where Clinton remains the undisputed champ is among Democrats. When matched against her main rivals for the Democratic nomination, Clinton is the choice of 51 percent of Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters over Obama’s 39 percent; and she defeats Edwards 57 percent to 38 percent. Obama has not substantially narrowed Clinton’s lead since the early March NEWSWEEK poll, where he trailed Clinton by 14 points. Edwards has narrowed Clinton’s lead over him though. Back in March Edwards trailed Clinton by 31 points; now her lead is down to 19 points.

Giuliani, the Republican frontrunner, might want to look over his shoulder too. Among Republicans and Republican-leaning voters, Giuliani leads McCain 56 percent to 41 percent (15 points). But two months ago in the NEWSWEEK Poll, Giuliani held a 25-point lead. Both candidates trounce Romney, despite his placing first in the first-quarter fundraising sweepstakes. Giuliani holds a staggering 51-point lead over Romney and McCain holds a 41-point lead over the former Massachusetts governor.

With 38 percent of Republicans dissatisfied with their party’s field, things could get interesting if former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson joins the race; 46 percent of Republicans who are dissatisfied with their candidates say he should (34 percent say he shouldn’t). Of the much smaller 14 percent of Democrats who are dissatisfied with their candidates, 60 percent say they want former vice president and Democratic nominee Al Gore to join the fray. Current New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a Democrat who changed parties shortly before running for mayor, receives unenthusiastic support from both Republicans and Democrats: 18 percent of dissatisfied Democrats would like to see Bloomberg join the Democratic field, and an even more anemic 14 percent of Republicans would like to see him join theirs.

All of the candidates can perhaps take some solace in Americans’ dissatisfaction with the way things are going in the United States at this time (only 25 percent are satisfied; 71 percent dissatisfied). American dissatisfaction ratings last hit 71 in the NEWSWEEK poll in May 2006, at the height of the scandal over secret government wiretapping inside the United States. The last time that even half of our survey respondents were happy with the direction of the country was in April 2003, shortly after the start of the Iraq war. With that many unhappy Americans, the nation should have a strong appetite for new leaders and new ideas.

The NEWSWEEK Poll was conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International May 2-3. Telephone interviews were conducted with 1,001 adults, age 18 and older; the overall margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points. The margin of error for questions asked only of Democrats and Democratic leaners is plus or minus 7 percentage points; for Republicans and GOP leaners, 8 percentage points.
© 2007 MSNBC.com
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18.../newsweek/

 

[Superlative]

Wait....why are you posting from al-jazzera???
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18.../newsweek/

News is news. Its either left or right. Read and decide at your leisure.

 

[boedicca]

There is an old saying "you can be popular, or you can be President". Bush is the exception to the rule.

Bush is not running for re-election in 2008, and has dug in to support the courage of his convictions. One may disagree with his policies, but at least one knows where he stands. I'd rather have someone like him for President than the opposite strain of someone who flip flops and makes all decisions based on polls.

 

[maineman]

There is an old saying "you can be popular, or you can be President". Bush is the exception to the rule.

Bush is not running for re-election in 2008, and has dug in to support the courage of his convictions. One may disagree with his policies, but at least one knows where he stands. I'd rather have someone like him for President than the opposite strain of someone who flip flops and makes all decisions based on polls.

that is like saying you'd rather freeze to death than roast. Are you suggesting that those are the only types of presidents we can have?

 

[Superlative]

There is an old saying "you can be popular, or you can be President". Bush is the exception to the rule.

Bush is not running for re-election in 2008, and has dug in to support the courage of his convictions. One may disagree with his policies, but at least one knows where he stands. I'd rather have someone like him for President than the opposite strain of someone who flip flops and makes all decisions based on polls.

Polls may not be the way to go, But a president who continues to stand by his convictions in the face of such opposition may not be the man to stand behind.

Whats going on is gambling, gambling with other peoples lives, Politicians are betting one way or the other, Iraq will go well, -stick with Bush. Iraq will go bad, -Go with public opinion. All the while people are dying.

Bush is standing strong, but does it make him a better leader? or does it make him a stubborn Republican who is unwilling to comprimise in order to reach a solution?