Poll: Bush Approval Rating At New Low

[gldstwmn]

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/01/22/opinion/polls/main2384943.shtml

(CBS) President Bush will deliver his State of the Union address Tuesday night to a nation that's strongly opposed to his plan for increasing troops in Iraq and deeply unhappy with his performance as president, according to a CBS News poll.

Mr. Bush’s overall approval rating has fallen to just 28 percent, a new low, while more than twice as many (64 percent) disapprove of the way he's handling his job.

Two-thirds of Americans remain opposed to the president's plan for sending more than 20,000 additional U.S. troops to Iraq — roughly the same number as after Mr. Bush announced the plan. And 72 percent believe he should seek congressional approval for the troop increase.

However, the poll finds more Americans might back the president's plan if they were convinced it would assure U.S. success in Iraq.

SHOULD U.S. SEND 20,000 MORE TROOPS TO IRAQ?

Favor
29%
Oppose
66%


…if it increased U.S.’ chances for success?

Favor
53%
Oppose
38%

However, Americans aren't convinced the U.S. needs a troop increase to achieve its goals in Iraq. Just 26 percent think that's needed, about the same number that think those goals can be reached without sending in more troops.

Forty-one percent think the U.S. can't achieve its goals regardless of troop levels.

The president's nationally televised message to Congress may not even reach many of those whose minds he would like to change. Less than half the public says it's very likely to watch the speech — and that answer comes more from those who already support him.

There's still more troubling news for the president: By a more than 2-to-1 margin, Americans think Mr. Bush does not share their priorities. Just 28 percent think he does, while 69 percent think he does not.

More than two-thirds of Americans also think the country has gotten off on the wrong track, while just 26 percent think it is headed in the right direction.

DOES BUSH SHARE YOUR PRIORITIES?

Yes
28%
No
69%

Mr. Bush's approval rating is much lower than it was one year ago, when 42 percent of Americans approved, and far lower than the ratings he received in polls prior to his previous State of the Union addresses. Those ratings have fallen steadily since a high of 82 percent in January 2002, shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.

His job approval is also far below those of other modern two-term presidents at this point in their second terms.

In January 1999, for example, just after his impeachment by the House of Representatives, President Bill Clinton's job approval rating was 65 percent. In January 1987, President Ronald Reagan's was 52 percent. In 1967, President Lyndon Johnson received a 47 percent approval rating, even as debate about the Vietnam War raged.

The war in Iraq remains the most important problem facing the country, cited by 33 percent of Americans, far more than mentioned the next top issues, the economy and jobs (8 percent) and health care (7 percent).

Only one in four believes the war is going even somewhat well, while three-quarters say it's going badly — something the president himself acknowledged earlier this month and the highest number since the war began.

MOST IMPORTANT PROBLEM

War in Iraq
33%
Economy and jobs
8%
Health care
7%

Americans are split on whether Congress, now under Democratic control, should offer a non-binding resolution against the troop increase: 42 percent say yes and 42 percent say no. But more than half of Americans — including most Democrats — want Congress to cut off the money for the troop buildup, including a small number who want to cut funds for the entire war.

Mr. Bush is expected to talk mostly about domestic concerns in Tuesday's address — and that is what most Americans want to hear; just one in four wants to hear mostly about foreign policy and Iraq.

On the domestic front, Americans think the economy is in good shape, but a majority says the Social Security system needs to be fixed now.

The public is split on whether the 2001 tax cuts should be made permanent. More than half think the issue of illegal immigration is very serious, but are divided on whether Congress will actually pass immigration reform.

Americans continue to see global warming as a serious problem. Seven in 10 say it is a problem that is having a serious impact right now. A quarter disagrees.

[vermicious knid]

…if it increased U.S.’ chances for success?

Favor
53%
Oppose
38%

So the question is basically "If sending more troops has good results, do you like that?" What a silly question. It seems to discount anyone who does not think the escalation will do any good.

[SuzeQuze]

28% "approval" rating? That's just funny.

:lol: :laugh: :lol:

[mikeschmike]

28% "approval" rating? That's just funny.

:lol: :laugh: :lol:

Funny, embarassing, revolting...whatever you want to call it.

[SuzeQuze]

Funny, embarassing, revolting...whatever you want to call it.

D., all of the above. Plus pathetic.

[DavidMn]

I'm waiting for him to show up tonight and say something to the effect of "I dont give a damn what democorats or the public thinks, the last time I checked I'm the president, and this is whats going to be done!":laugh:

[Nixxxed]

Think it's low now? Just wait until the speech is over...

- Call to reduce gas consumption by 20%, yet he's doubling the size of the SOR
- New taxes ("read his Dad's lips, people") on healthcare plans
- Everything else he says

[carrie721]

I'm waiting for him to show up tonight and say something to the effect of "I dont give a damn what democorats or the public thinks, the last time I checked I'm the president, and this is whats going to be done!":laugh:

i think that's basically been his attitude since day 1. :shrug:

y'know, he's the decider and all.

[carrie721]

Think it's low now? Just wait until the speech is over...

- Call to reduce gas consumption by 20%, yet he's doubling the size of the SOR
- New taxes ("read his Dad's lips, people") on healthcare plans
- Everything else he says

i think it's time to bring back the vomitorium as a public space ... we can set up tv's to watch the SOTU and then puke our guts out after. it'll be great.

[estranged4life]

Think I will watch ECW tonight, Extreme wrasslin' is much more entertaining than hearing from the asses' lips :lol:

I still think the creator of the 'mute button' should be awarded for creating the greatest invention in history...It makes ALL politicians more tolerable :laugh:

[estranged4life]

- New taxes ("read his Dad's lips, people") on healthcare plans


Bush Superior said "Read my taxes, no new lips" :lol:

[Nixxxed]

And don't forget, people:

In tonight's speech when Dubya says "Sept. 11" (or any of its variations) or otherwise plays the terror card,

DRINK!

I promise the speech will be much easier to endure.

[carrie721]

And don't forget, people:

In tonight's speech when Dubya says "Sept. 11" (or any of its variations) or otherwise plays the terror card,

DRINK!

I promise the speech will be much easier to endure.

:laugh:

i knew i was saving that bottle of jager for something.

[estranged4life]

And don't forget, people:

In tonight's speech when Dubya says "Sept. 11" (or any of its variations) or otherwise plays the terror card,

DRINK!

I promise the speech will be much easier to endure.


that's all we'll need, more Bush ballhugging voters getting drunk on each mention of 911 and procreating more backwood retards for the military to send off to finish Georgie-Juniors 'job for Daddy dearest' :shrug: :laugh:

Since I dont drink, How about I fart when he mentions 911 instead? I betcha I could singlehandedly solve the 'gas' problems of the reliance on foreign fuel for the US :nod:

[Nixxxed]

Since I dont drink, How about I fart when he mentions 911 instead? I betcha I could singlehandedly solve the 'gas' problems of the reliance on foreign fuel for the US :nod:

Bong hits are also acceptable.

Bingo anyone?

http://a9.g.akamai.net/7/9/8082/v002/democratic1.download.akamai.com/8082/files/bingo/bingo.html

[carrie721]

Bong hits are also acceptable.

Bingo anyone?

http://a9.g.akamai.net/7/9/8082/v002/democratic1.download.akamai.com/8082/files/bingo/bingo.html

:laugh:

but where's nuc-u-lar?

[Nixxxed]

It's on mine - are you seeing the "Refresh Bingo Card" button? It's barely visible on my screen - but I kept clicking until I got the set of Bushisms I wanted. :laugh: I've already won a game (playing online) just from watching the SOTU pre-coverage. :nod:

[SuzeQuze]

Think I will watch ECW tonight, Extreme wrasslin' is much more entertaining than hearing from the asses' lips :lol:

I still think the creator of the 'mute button' should be awarded for creating the greatest invention in history...It makes ALL politicians more tolerable :laugh:

I watched Veronica Mars.

[michelle2677]

I watched this piece of sh*t. Then at the end, when i got the ground-breaking information..."our state of the union....is strong" well halle-f*cking-lujah. Good job-thanks for spelling it out there for me :rolleyes: That's an hour of my life i'll never get back. He's just lucky he didn't interfere with american idol :laugh:

[carrie721]

I watched this piece of sh*t. Then at the end, when i got the ground-breaking information..."our state of the union....is strong" well halle-f*cking-lujah. Good job-thanks for spelling it out there for me :rolleyes: That's an hour of my life i'll never get back. He's just lucky he didn't interfere with american idol :laugh:

lol. he says that exact **** every single year. :rolleyes: what****ingevah.

[strandinthewind]

. . . He's just lucky he didn't interfere with american idol :laugh:

Rove ain't THAT dumb :laugh:

[gldstwmn]

Bong hits are also acceptable.

Bingo anyone?

http://a9.g.akamai.net/7/9/8082/v002/democratic1.download.akamai.com/8082/files/bingo/bingo.html

Aw, I wish I would have had this last night. I only made it the first 15 minutes of the speech. Then I found myself wanting Taco Bell. Odd.

[strandinthewind]

Aw, I wish I would have had this last night. I only made it the first 15 minutes of the speech. Then I found myself wanting Taco Bell. Odd.

LOL - MUNCHIES and $5.00 on the $1.00 menu.

Personally, I could not watch the speech and went out instead :shrug:

[carrie721]

Aw, I wish I would have had this last night. I only made it the first 15 minutes of the speech. Then I found myself wanting Taco Bell. Odd.

maybe it was a misdirected urge to flee the country?

[hayley]

I watched Veronica Mars.

Me too! Veronica actually had its best ratings last year during the SOTU and hopefully will again- The CW/UPN was the only show not to break in and cover the speech.

I have never watched one of his speeches in its entirety aside from the two sets of debates, if those count. He starts speaking and my eyes glaze over. I literally cannot comprehend the words he is trying to say.

[SuzeQuze]

Me too! Veronica actually had its best ratings last year during the SOTU and hopefully will again- The CW/UPN was the only show not to break in and cover the speech.

I have never watched one of his speeches in its entirety aside from the two sets of debates, if those count. He starts speaking and my eyes glaze over. I literally cannot comprehend the words he is trying to say.

Yeah, I love the show. I never thought I would like it, I don't know why. I'm glad they didn't air him and I hope the ratings are through the roof!

I tried to watch him once and I told myself I never would do it to myself again! :lol: I find it interesting that now that Congress is so different he is singing a different tune. He just parrots what power dictates.

[hayley]

Yeah, I love the show. I never thought I would like it, I don't know why. I'm glad they didn't air him and I hope the ratings are through the roof!

I tried to watch him once and I told myself I never would do it to myself again! :lol: I find it interesting that now that Congress is so different he is singing a different tune. He just parrots what power dictates.

oh, it's so awesome! you need to see it from the beginning. i think target had season 1 & 2 on sale for like 17.99 each, although that might be ending this weekend.

[estranged4life]

for those who missed yet another SOTU w/Bush (I prefer STFU Bush) Here are the highlights::

"Blahblahblahblahblahblah9/11blahblahblahblahimmigration
blahblahblahblahblahLet'sHumpTheBibleblahblahblahblahEconomy
blahblahblahblahI'mPelosi'sBitchNowblahblahblahblah
blahblahblahIraqblahblahblahblahIranblahblahblahblah
blahblahblahIranblahblahblahblahIraqblahblahblahblah
blahblahblahIran&IraqblahblahblahblahIraq&Iranblahblahblah
BlahblahblahblahblahblahWhat,MeWorry??blahblahblahblahIBlowGoatsblahblahblahblah"

edit: I watched South Park & ECW, So I lucked out and missed the Bush-tator's STFU speech

[DavidMn]

My reaction to the State Of The Union speech? ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ:laugh:

[strandinthewind]

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved a nonbinding measure saying President Bush's plan to increase troops in Iraq is "not in the national interest of the United States.

from cnn.com

That is HUGE and humiliating for W. But, that's what you get when you ignore every shed of coherent advice your given.

[carrie721]

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee has approved a nonbinding measure saying President Bush's plan to increase troops in Iraq is "not in the national interest of the United States.

from cnn.com

That is HUGE and humiliating for W. But, that's what you get when you ignore every shed of coherent advice your given.

i just read this. how much clout will this nonbinding measure have, though? sure it's humiliating, but will this change anything?

[strandinthewind]

Democrats move to condemn Bush plan for troop buildup
Story Highlights• Senate panel expected to pass resolution opposing more troops in Iraq


• GOP Sen. Hagel fears putting "22,000 more Americans into that grinder"
• Resolution, to be debated next week, would not stop plan to increase troops
• Eight Republican senators on record opposing Bush plan


WASHINGTON (AP) -- Democrats took the first step toward a wartime repudiation of President Bush on Wednesday, a step designed to condemn the deployment of more troops to Iraq.

Democrats convened the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to endorse legislation declaring that sending additional troops to Iraq is "not in the national interest."

"We better be damn sure we know what we're doing, all of us, before we put 22,000 more Americans into that grinder," said Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, the only Republican on the committee to announce support for the measure.

Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Delaware, the panel's chairman, said the legislation is "not an attempt to embarrass the president. ... It's an attempt to save the president from making a significant mistake with regard to our policy in Iraq."

Less than one month after taking control of Congress, there was little doubt Democrats had the votes to prevail. They hold 11 seats on the committee, to the Republicans' 10.

The full Senate is scheduled to begin debate on the measure next week, although Biden has said he is willing to negotiate changes in hopes of attracting support from more Republicans.

Even Republicans opposed to the measure expressed unease with the revised policy involving a war that has lasted nearly four years, claimed the lives of more than 3,000 U.S. troops and helped Democrats win control of Congress in last fall's elections.

"I am not confident that President Bush's plan will succeed," said Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, senior Republican on the committee.

But he also said he would vote against the measure. "It is unclear to me how passing a nonbinding resolution that the president has already said he will ignore will contribute to any improvement or modification of our Iraq policy."

"The president is deeply invested in this plan, and the deployments ... have already begun," Lugar added.

He suggested a more forceful role for Congress, and said lawmakers must ensure the administration is "planning for contingencies, including the failure of the Iraqi government to reach compromises and the persistence of violence despite U.S. and Iraqi government efforts."

Impassioned debate
Divisions over the war were on clear display as the committee met.

Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Connecticut, said he wanted to change the measure to say flatly that the troop level in Iraq "may not exceed the levels" in place before Bush announced his new policy.

Sen. Russell Feingold, D-Wisconsin, chastised fellow lawmakers, accusing them of being reticent to respond to Bush's plans. He said he would seek legislation cutting off funds for any troop buildup.

Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minnesota, said he wanted the nonbinding measure changed to allow Bush to increase troops in the Anbar province in western Iraq, but not in Baghdad, where the sectarian violence is particularly fierce.

Hagel's remarks were among the most impassioned of the day, and he was unstinting in his criticism of the White House.

"There is no strategy," he said of the Bush administration's war management. "This is a Ping-Pong game with American lives. These young men and women that we put in Anbar province, in Iraq, in Baghdad are not beans; they're real lives. And we better be damn sure we know what we're doing, all of us, before we put 22,000 more Americans into that grinder."

A Vietnam veteran, he fairly lectured fellow senators not to duck a painful debate about a war that has grown increasingly unpopular as it has gone on. "No president of the United States can sustain a foreign policy or a war policy without the sustained support of the American people," Hagel said.

Number of Republicans opposed to plan grows
At least eight other Republican senators say they now back legislative proposals registering objections to Bush's decision to boost U.S. military strength in Iraq by 21,500 troops.

The growing list -- which includes Sens. Gordon Smith, George Voinovich and Sam Brownback -- has emboldened Democrats, who are pushing for a vote in the full Senate by next week to rebuke the president's Iraq policy.

In his State of the Union speech Tuesday night, Bush urged skeptical members of Congress to give the plan a chance to work.

Many lawmakers remained reluctant.

"I wonder whether the clock has already run out," said Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine. She said she was worried that U.S. troops in Iraq are already perceived "not as liberators but as occupiers."

Former New York Mayor Giuliani expresses support
Bush did get a word of support from former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, one of the 2008 Republican presidential hopefuls.

"I believe we should give the president the support to do this. I want us to be successful in Iraq," he said Wednesday on NBC's "Today" show. "I know how important it is to the overall war on terror. Success in Iraq means a more peaceful world for America, it means a victory against terrorists. Failure in Iraq means a big defeat against terrorists and the war on terror is going to be tougher for us."

But Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, appearing on the same show, said, "I think all of us are talking about a phased redeployment which would leave American troops in the region to send a strong message, not only to the Iraqi government that we want to help them, but also to neighbors, like Iran, that we're not abandoning the field."


Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/01/24/us.iraq.ap/index.html

[strandinthewind]

i just read this. how much clout will this nonbinding measure have, though? sure it's humiliating, but will this change anything?

IMO what it chages is the vast support the R's have given W. Clearly, that is ending. Sadly, not before we are a nation in financial straights and our brave men and women are dying or being hurt as a result. Oh well, at least Halliburton made a few billion :mad:

[carrie721]

IMO what it chages is the vast support the R's have given W. Clearly, that is ending. Sadly, not before we are a nation in financial straights and our brave men and women are dying or being hurt as a result. Oh well, at least Halliburton made a few billion :mad:

i'm still skeptical that this will curtail bush/cheney/rove's bloodthirstiness, but we shall see.

[SuzeQuze]

oh, it's so awesome! you need to see it from the beginning. i think target had season 1 & 2 on sale for like 17.99 each, although that might be ending this weekend.

Well I just might pick up 1 if it is still on sale. I have to go there to exchange GG Season 6 anyway since the last disc won't play. I've been having the worst luck with DVDs and CDs not working lately! Does anyone else have this problem?

[strandinthewind]

i'm still skeptical that this will curtail bush/cheney/rove's bloodthirstiness, but we shall see.

I agree time will tell. The facts before us though indicate W moved the rhetoric to the middle in his SOTU speech as he did not mention any religious right issues, other than the war, which really goes beyond the whole "morally right thing to" schpeel. Will that continue - again time

[strandinthewind]

The man lives in LA LA LAND

Cheney: Talk of Iraq blunders, low credibility 'hogwash'

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Vice President Dick Cheney on Wednesday dismissed as "hogwash" the suggestion that blunders may have hurt the administration's credibility on Iraq and led members of Congress on both sides of the aisle to question President Bush's plan to send more troops to Baghdad.

In an interview with CNN's Wolf Blitzer, carried out a day after President Bush delivered his State of the Union address, the vice president was told that some Republicans in Congress "are now seriously questioning your credibility, because of the blunders and the failures."

To that Cheney responded: "Wolf, Wolf, I simply don't accept the premise of your question. I just think it's hogwash."

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee defied President Bush on Wednesday and approved a resolution declaring that sending more troops to Iraq is "not in the national interest."

"We better be damn sure we know what we're doing, all of us, before we put 22,000 more Americans into that grinder," said Sen. Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, one of the harshest Republican critics of the plan. (Full story)

Cheney said the administration is committed to moving ahead with its plan to send more troops to secure Baghdad, even if Congress passes a resolution in opposition.

"It won't stop us," he said. "And it would be, I think, detrimental from the standpoint of the troops."

If U.S. forces were to pull out of Iraq, "We would simply validate the terrorists' strategy that says the Americans will not stay to complete the task ... that we don't have the stomach for the fight. That's the biggest threat."

Cheney added, "The notion that somehow the effort hasn't been worth it or that we shouldn't go ahead and complete the task is just dead wrong."

Bush's Iraq plan also calls for U.S. forces to help Iraq better equip its military and accelerate training of Iraqi troops. The Iraqi government plans to take full responsibility for the country's security by November.

Bush asked Congress and the public to give his plan to help the Iraqi government end sectarian violence "a chance to work."

"We went into this largely united," the president said during Tuesday's speech. "And whatever you voted for, you did not vote for failure." (Full story)

Two-thirds of the people surveyed in a CNN/Opinion Research Corp. poll released on the eve of the speech oppose the plan. The poll was conducted Friday through Sunday and was based on telephone interviews with 1,008 adult Americans. It has a sampling error of plus-or-minus 3 points.

Cheney said the U.S.-led ouster of Saddam Hussein was the right move.

"The world is much safer today because of it," the vice president said. There have been three national elections in Iraq. There's a democracy established there, a constitution, a new democratically elected government. Saddam has been brought to justice and executed, his sons are dead, his government is gone. And the world is better off for it."

Cheney added that had Hussein been allowed to remain at the helm of Iraq, "he would, at this point, be engaged in a nuclear arms race with (Iranian President Mahmoud) Ahmadinejad, his blood enemy next door in Iran."

Cheney acknowledged "ongoing problems" in Iraq, where an insurgency is blamed for dozens of Iraqi deaths each day and more than 3,000 U.S. military fatalities over the course of the nearly four-year-old war.

"There's problems, ongoing problems. But we have, in fact, accomplished our objectives of getting rid of the old regime, and there is a new regime in place that's been there for less than a year, far too soon for you guys to write them off," Cheney said.

He added, "We still have more work to do to get a handle on the security situation, and the president's put a plan in place to do that."

Asked to describe the biggest mistake made by U.S. war planners, Cheney said: "I think we underestimated the extent to which 30 years of Saddam's rule had really hammered the population, especially the Shia population, into submissiveness. It's very hard for them to stand up and take responsibility, in part because anybody who's done that in the past have had their heads chopped off."

Asked about the pregnancy of his daughter Mary, who is in a relationship with a female partner, Cheney expressed irritation with his questioner.

"I'm delighted I'm about to have a sixth grandchild, Wolf," he said. "And, obviously, I think the world of both my daughters and all of my grandchildren. And I think, frankly, you're out of line with that question."


Find this article at:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/01/24/cheney/index.html

[gldstwmn]

maybe it was a misdirected urge to flee the country?

Make a run for the border? :laugh:

[carrie721]

Make a run for the border? :laugh:

seriously. :laugh: i wonder if that's why i really wanted some irish cream before/during/after the speech ... :p :laugh:

[estranged4life]

Make a run for the border? :laugh:

last time I ate Taco Bell I had the runs...Oops, wrong "make a run for the border".

[michelle2677]

Rove ain't THAT dumb :laugh:

:laugh: :laugh: Sometimes I wonder......