When the economy was in peril in 2001 and 2002, mainstream media mavens couldn't hang the "recession" albatross around President Bush's neck often enough.
But now that the President's economic policy of low taxes and minimal business regulation is beginning to bear some real fruit, Bush can't seem to get any credit for it.
Take Reuters, which last Friday published a piece on Bush and the economy. The news service wrote:
"President George W. Bush, trying to lift his sagging approval ratings, has launched a push to take credit for recent positive economic news the public has largely shrugged off."
Reuters then takes into account public sentiment, citing an ABC/Washington Post poll taken in November in which 64% of Americans described the economy as "poor" or "not so good," and 36% judged it to be "good" or "excellent."
"I think the White House is very frustrated," Cesar Conda, former aide to Vice President Dick Cheney, tells the news agency. "There's been good data on gross domestic product, employment and business spending, and even oil prices are receding. But it's not reflected in the polling data on Americans' views."
Rather than go the obvious route and examine the media's impact on the strange dichotomy between what's actually happening in the economy and Americans' perception of what is taking place, Reuters claims that Bush is using the economic news as a political wedge against opponents.
"In addition to a desire to stem a slide in the president's own popularity, Bush aides hope honing the economic message will help create a more favorable environment for Republicans ahead of next year's congressional elections," says the article.
Reuters then cites the most recent Gallup survey, which measures Bush's overall approval rating at 38% without mentioning more recent polls from Pew Research and Fox News. In those tallies, the President's numbers have risen to 46% and 42%, respectively.
However, the news agency does quote Pew Research editor Carroll Doherty, who says consumers are worried about "higher gasoline prices." But again there is no mention of the 33% decline in gas prices across the U.S. in November |
