Donkey Rising

by Ruy Teixeira


The new Pew Research
Center poll gives [George W.] Bush his worst
approval rating ever in that poll: just 43 percent, with 50 percent
disapproval. And the new Time/SRBI poll has his rating at 46 percent
approval/47 percent disapproval, also a low in that poll.

The Time poll has Bush's economic approval rating at 38/56,
also a new low; his Iraq approval rating at 41/55, tied for his lowest ever;
his Social Security rating at an abysmal 31/59; and even his rating on the war
on terrorism at an unimpressive 53/42. 

The SRBI report on the poll points out that Bush is losing
substantial ground among constituencies key to his narrow [“victory”] last
November.
 

• Older
  voters, women and independents have turned negative on Bush.
  

• Among
  Americans age 65 and over, 55% now disapprove of [Bush]'s
  performance, with only 36% approving.
  

• Only
  42% of women now approve of Bush, down from 51% just before the election.
  

• Males
  still approve of Bush's performance, 51% – 45%, down from 56% – 42% among
  registered voters in October.
  

• Women
  overwhelmingly disapprove of Bush's handling of Social Security by 34
  percentage points, 27% approve – 61% disapprove.
  

• Independents
  now disapprove of Bush by 13 points, 41% approve – 54% disapprove. Almost
  3 in 5 independents give Bush negative scores on Social Security (59%
  disapprove), Iraq
  (60% disapprove), and handling the economy (60% disapprove).
  

The poll also shows a 59-28 margin against Republican
efforts in the Senate to eliminate the use of the filibuster against Bush's
judicial nominees. 

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Ruy Teixeira is a Senior Fellow
at The CenturyFoundation and the Center
for American Progress