Bush Popularity in Trough

Following the Republican Party's mid-term election troubles, Americans continue to voice their doubts about the Bush presidency, with 67% now feeling negative about his job performance according to the latest Harris Poll findings.

As Congress prepares for leadership changes in January, Bush is struggling in the ratings. Currently just 31% approve of the job he is doing, down from 34% last month. This is the second lowest job performance score reported by Harris Interactive® (the lowest was in May, 2006 at 29% positive).

Growing concerns about his leadership have left him with negative ratings in a number of areas. The ongoing bloodshed in Iraq is still the most-cited, with 43% of Americans believing this is the most important issue for the government to tackle. Beyond Iraq, healthcare (15%), the economy (12%) and immigration (11%) are all issues which US adults say need to be addressed.

The dissatisfaction with Bush persists with unease about the overall direction of the country. More than half (58%) believe the country is seriously off course, while just 31% are optimistic; although this is a modest increase from last month, when 27% of adults believed things were going in the right direction.

Unsurprisingly Bush maintains majority support from his own party, but even here he might wish the figure were higher. Two thirds of Republicans (67%) support the president, compared with 29% of Independents and just 11% of Democrats.

The poll of 1,001 US citizens took place between November 17 and 21. Details can be found online at www.harrisinteractive.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.