Bush's support falling even more

[strandinthewind]

June 17, 2005
Bush's Support on Major Issues Tumbles in Poll
By ROBIN TONER and MARJORIE CONNELLY
Increasingly pessimistic about Iraq and skeptical about President Bush's plan for Social Security, Americans are in a season of political discontent, giving Mr. Bush one of the lowest approval ratings of his presidency and even lower marks to Congress, according to the New York Times/CBS News Poll.

Forty-two percent of the people responding to the poll said they approved of the way Mr. Bush was handling his job, a marked decline from his 51 percent rating after of the November election, when he embarked on an ambitious second term agenda led by the overhaul of Social Security. Sixteen months before the midterm elections, Congress fared even worse in the survey, with the approval of just 33 percent of the respondents, and 19 percent saying Congress shared their priorities.

Despite months of presidential effort, the nationwide poll found the public is not rallying toward Mr. Bush's vision of a new Social Security that would allow younger workers to put part of their payroll taxes into private investment accounts. Two-thirds said they were uneasy about Mr. Bush's ability to make sound decisions on Social Security. Only 25 percent said they approved of the way Mr. Bush was handling Social Security, down slightly from what the poll found in March.

Moreover, 45 percent said the more they heard about the Bush plan, the less they liked it. The survey also found the public shared the growing skepticism in Washington about Mr. Bush's prospects for success on Social Security, with most saying they did not think Mr. Bush would succeed.

Still, Mr. Bush continued to have majority support for his handling of the war on terrorism - 52 percent - one of his strengths throughout his 2004 re-election campaign.

Mr. Bush's approval rating is below the historical pattern for June in the first year of a second term: President Clinton's stood at 60 percent and President Reagan's at 59 percent. But that could reflect, in part, the much greater partisan polarization in modern politics, underscored by the 71 percentage point gap between Mr. Bush's approval rating from Democrats and Republicans in the recent poll. Nicolle Devenish, White House communications director, dismissed the significance of the poll, saying Mr. Bush believes that following polls is equivalent to a dog chasing its tail. "We have advanced a broad agenda, and will continue to advocate the people's priorities," she said.

On Iraq, months of continued turmoil, insurgent attacks and casualties appear to have taken a further toll on public attitudes. Looking back, 51 percent said they thought the United States should have stayed out of Iraq, while 45 percent said military action was the right thing to do. That reflects only a slight erosion from findings by CBS News throughout the spring, but a marked turnaround from 2004, when pluralities tended to think it was still the right thing to do.

Moreover, only 37 percent said they approved of Mr. Bush's handling of the situation in Iraq, down from 45 percent in February. A strong majority of Americans now say the effort by the United States to bring stability and order to Iraq is going badly - 60 percent, up from 47 percent in February.

The latest poll was conducted by telephone June 10 through Wednesday with 1,111 adults and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points.

In general, the survey found Americans in a darker mood. In one key measure, only 33 percent said they thought the country was on the right track, while 61 percent said it had gone off in the wrong direction. Similar results were found by CBS News in April and May, but that measure of national optimism was markedly better last November. There was little change in the way Americans rate the current condition of the American economy - 54 percent say it is very or fairly good. But the number of Americans who say the economy is getting worse is growing, to 36 percent from 30 percent in February.

When asked an open-ended question about the most important problems facing the nation, Americans cited the economy and jobs, war and terrorism at the top of the list. Social Security, which has consumed an enormous amount of political energy this spring, did not make the top six, suggesting voters have a different view of political priorities than the Republican-controlled Congress and the White House.

The public's view of Congress dropped sharply earlier this year, and has hovered at unusually low levels since March, according to CBS News Polls.

The sharpest drop in Congressional approval in recent months occurred among Republicans. In February, 54 percent of Republicans said they approved of the way Congress was doing its job; in the most recent poll, that had dropped to 40 percent. Some analysts suggest that Congress is paying the price for months of intense partisan struggle over judicial nominations and the decision to intervene in the right-to-die case of Terri Schiavo.

Christine Weisman, a 54-year-old Republican homemaker in Reading, Pa., said in a follow-up interview, "They're not getting anything done. They don't seem to be able to come together on anything." She added, "It's all a political thing and they're forgetting the basic needs of the people."

Representative Rahm Emanuel, the Illinois Democrat who heads the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, said, "The American people know instinctively that we have major problems and we've got a Congress that is not attending or dealing with them." As the party in control, Republicans should be held responsible, Mr. Emanuel said, although he added that the 2006 midterms were far too distant for predictions.

Representative Thomas M. Reynolds of New York, who heads the National Republican Congressional Committee, said the old truism still held: "People are not enamored, maybe, of the institution of Congress, but they love their congressman." He added, "My advice to the policy makers around Congress is to continue to get the work done, and make sure that as we get the work done, people know about it."

Mr. Bush faces a very resistant public when it comes to his Social Security proposals. He recently embraced a solvency plan that would cushion the lowest income workers from any benefit cuts, but a majority in the survey said they still believed Mr. Bush's general plan would most benefit high income people.

He has spent months trying to explain the virtues of private investment accounts, but public opinion on them remains very divided. Forty-five percent said those accounts were a good idea, 50 percent a bad idea, the same breakdown found in the survey in January.

People like the idea that the accounts could be inherited and that they could result in more money for retirement; both arguments boost support for the accounts. But the idea that these accounts could lead to huge amounts of government borrowing - to finance the transition costs - resulted in a very negative response, as did the idea that the accounts would be accompanied by a cut in the guaranteed government benefit.

Americans also recognized that Mr. Bush has a Social Security plan and the Democrats in Congress do not. A majority said they would like to see the Democrats offer a plan and not simply oppose Mr. Bush's.

But most said they did not think Mr. Bush's plan for private accounts would do anything for the system's long-term solvency.

Mr. Bush's approval rating in the Times/CBS Survey is one of a series of recent national polls that registered difficulties for Mr. Bush. The Associated Press-Ipsos Poll found Mr. Bush with a 43 percent approval rating; Gallup with 47 percent, and the Washington Post/ABC News Poll at 48 percent.

Fred Backus contributed reporting for this article.

from www.nytimes.com

[BombaySapphire3]

What ever happened to Smirky the Chimp's mandate?The only mandate Bush has is a ranch hand by the name of Pedro.

[SuzeQuze]

Originally Posted by BombaySapphire3

What ever happened to Smirky the Chimp's mandate?The only mandate Bush has is a ranch hand by the name of Pedro.

A letter was delivered to him yesterday asking direct questions be answered.

As a result of these concerns, we would ask that you respond to the following questions:
1)Do you or anyone in your administration dispute the accuracy of the leaked document?
2) Were arrangements being made, including the recruitment of allies, before you sought Congressional authorization to go to war? Did you or anyone in your Administration obtain Britain's commitment to invade prior to this time?
3) Was there an effort to create an ultimatum about weapons inspectors in order to help with the justification for the war as the minutes indicate?
4) At what point in time did you and Prime Minister Blair first agree it was necessary to invade Iraq?
5) Was there a coordinated effort with the U.S. intelligence community and/or British officials to "fix" the intelligence and facts around the policy as the leaked document states?

http://www.johnconyers.campaignoffice.com/index.asp?Type=SUPERFORMS&SEC={0C100776-079F-42A6-9F88-8B82ABBDC32D}

He sucks and people are finally beginning to wake up to it.

[ontheEdgeof17]

Originally Posted by SuzeQuze

He sucks and people are finally beginning to wake up to it.

Yet again, 8 months too late.

[SuzeQuze]

Originally Posted by ontheEdgeof17

Yet again, 8 months too late.

I can't believe his approval rating on Iraq handling is 52%. I don't think that's gonna last. Sh*t is hitting fan, and there's a ton of it.

[macfanken]

The Downing Street Memo is finally starting to get some attention from the media. It was the top story on MSNBC this morning. If you missed The Downing Street Minutes and Pre-War Intelligence on C-SPAN, it's going to be repeated tonight at 8 pm EDT on C-SPAN 2.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by SuzeQuze

A letter was delivered to him yesterday asking direct questions be answered.

The best thing is that the media actually covered it! And they are starting to talk about the Downing Street Memo a lot. This is going to be a problem.

[gldstwmn]

Originally Posted by SuzeQuze

I can't believe his approval rating on Iraq handling is 52%. I don't think that's gonna last. Sh*t is hitting fan, and there's a ton of it.

CNN actually reported it as 42% last night.

[strandinthewind]

More evidence that W and, perhaps more so, Frist, are failing

from www.nytimes.com
____________________________________________


June 21, 2005

Senate Leader Plans No New Vote on Bolton Nomination

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Filed at 1:08 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist announced Tuesday that he won't schedule another vote on John Bolton's nomination as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.

In so doing, the Tennessee Republican acknowledged there was nothing further he could do to break a Democratic stalemate with the Bush White House over Bolton.

''That's been exhausted,'' Frist said a day after Democrats again blocked a vote on the floor on Bolton's nomination. It was the second time the minority party in the Senate mustered enough votes to prevent Bolton's confirmation process from advancing.

Asked about Frist's remarks, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said, ''We'll continue to work with the Senate leadership.''

Frist said that ''at this juncture, we have to go back to the president and see what the decision he's going to make is.''

He said scheduling a third vote now would be fruitless because Democrats will just keep stalling over information they are demanding from the White House.

''Whether it is politics or whatever their concerns are with, the goal posts constantly shifting. Bringing up another vote's not going to change anything,'' Frist said.

The White House earlier Tuesday has issued a new call for a vote on the nomination, accusing Democrats of being unwilling to compromise. ''They're only interested in blocking this nomination from moving forward,'' McCellan said at the time.
_____________________________________________

A recess appointment is possible and maybe even likely thought. However, that they could not get this guy through the regular way shows disfavorably on them - not to mention a few R's are balking at this guy.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by gldstwmn

CNN actually reported it as 42% last night.

Here is some more info.:

Poll shows dissatisfaction with Iraq war
Approval rating for war on terrorism also slips

(CNN) -- Nearly six in 10 Americans oppose the war in Iraq and a growing number of them are dissatisfied with the war on terrorism, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday.

Only 39 percent of those polled said they favored the war in Iraq -- down from 47 percent in March -- and 59 percent were opposed.

The survey of 1,006 adults, conducted by telephone Thursday through Sunday, had an error margin of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The percentage of Americans dissatisfied with the war in Iraq is comparable to responses to similar questions in other recent polls.

In a Gallup poll earlier this month that asked, "All in all, do you think it was worth going to war in Iraq, or not," 56 percent said it was not worth it and 42 percent said it was. (Full story)

A poll taken in December 2003, shortly after the capture of Saddam Hussein, found that 62 percent of Americans believed the war was worthwhile. (Full story)

War on terror
The poll showed that approval for the Bush administration's war on terrorism also has declined, with 10 percent of respondents saying they were very satisfied with the way things were going in the war on terrorism, down from 19 percent in a February poll.

Forty-seven percent of respondents said they were "not satisfied" with the war on terrorism -- up from 35 percent in February -- and 42 percent were "somewhat satisfied," compared to 45 percent in the earlier poll.

Even so, only 4 percent said they considered a terrorist attack in the United States over the next few weeks "very likely" -- down from 10 percent in February.

Thirty-one percent considered an attack somewhat likely and 63 percent said one was not likely, compared to 38 percent and 51 percent, respectively, in a December poll.

Fewer than four in 10 Americans said they were at least somewhat worried about becoming a victim of terror.

The poll showed that 52 percent of respondents approved of how the United States has treated prisoners at the detention camp in the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba -- compared to 37 percent who disapproved.

Some critics have said the facility should be closed in the wake of allegations of mistreatment of detainees there, but poll respondents disagreed -- 58 percent to 36 percent.

Presidential ratings
Meanwhile, 47 percent of those surveyed said they approved of how President Bush was handling his job, the same percentage as earlier this month.

Over the past year, Bush's rating has hovered near 50 percent, with a low of 45 percent in March and a high of 57 percent just after his second inauguration and the State of the Union in February. A poll in May put his approval rating at 46 percent. (Full story)

For only the second time in a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, more respondents than not disapproved of Bush's job performance. The count was 51 percent, the same percentage recorded in the poll on May 7, 2004.

Only 23 percent said they had a great deal of confidence in the Bush administration's ability to protect U.S. citizens from future terrorist attacks, down from 38 percent in February.

Those expressing a moderate amount of confidence rose slightly to 38 percent from 35 percent, while those saying they had no confidence climbed to 17 percent from 10 percent in February.

Bush: U.S. 'making progress' in Iraq
Bush said Monday the United States is "making progress" toward its goals in the war in Iraq.

"The report from the field is that, while it's tough, more and more Iraqis are becoming battle-hardened and trained to defend themselves," Bush told reporters at an appearance with European Union leaders at the White House.

"That's exactly the strategy that's going to work -- and it is going to work. And we will complete this mission for the sake of world peace."

Sen. Joseph Biden, a Delaware Democrat, said Sunday on CBS's "Face the Nation" Sunday that a "gigantic gap" exists "between the rhetoric here in Washington and the reality on the ground."

Sen. John McCain, an Arizona Republican, said Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press" that Americans should be told that the war there will last at least "a couple more years." (Full story)

Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/POLITICS/06/20/poll/index.html

[chiliD]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

More evidence that W and, perhaps more so, Frist, are failing.

And, let's hope they drag Cheney & Rumsfeld with 'em.

And Tom DeLay

And...

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by chiliD

And, let's hope they drag Cheney & Rumsfeld with 'em.

And Tom DeLay

And...

Amen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

All of the foregoing make me ill

[dissention]

Originally Posted by strandinthewind

Poll shows dissatisfaction with Iraq war
Approval rating for war on terrorism also slips

(CNN) -- Nearly six in 10 Americans oppose the war in Iraq and a growing number of them are dissatisfied with the war on terrorism, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday.

A day late and a dollar short if you ask me. ****ing fools.

[strandinthewind]

Originally Posted by dissention

A day late and a dollar short if you ask me. ****ing fools.

I think this poll is a tad misleading. I think people supported W's decision to make SH comply with the UN's repeated findings of violations of UN resolutions. However, I think many of these same people are horrified by W's lack of a coherent plan in Iraq to win the peace.

Personally, I think Rove knows the war in Iraq, even as badly as it is going, is good for W in that it is a diversion and many people will not hear a words against it.

[dudden22]

Originally Posted by dissention

A day late and a dollar short if you ask me. ****ing fools.

Amen! Maybe he will start ragging on the gays again to rally some support. People are idiots.