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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: carranza2 who wrote (3618)	7/22/2003 2:03:11 PM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793552

President's approval rating drops in poll By Jim Drinkard, USA TODAY WASHINGTON - The sluggish economy and the continuing daily threat to U.S. forces in Iraq have taken a toll on President Bush's public standing, according to a USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll. The president's approval rating fell to 59%, its lowest level since March, in the poll of 1,003 adults over the weekend. Bush's lowest marks came on his handling of the economy: 45% approved, 51% disapproved. That weakness extended to the Republican Party, which controls Congress. Democrats had a 17-point advantage, 53%-36%, when poll respondents were asked which party would do a better job handling the economy. In January, the GOP had a 43%-42% edge. Bush's party held its edge on handling the threat of terrorism: Americans preferred Republican policies by 55% to 29%. The divide was narrower on the overall handling of foreign policy: Republicans were preferred 46% to 41%. On the handling of the postwar situation in Iraq, the GOP advantage dropped since January from 24 percentage points to 15 points. Republicans were favored on that question by 51%-36%. Bush held a 6-percentage-point advantage, 47%-41%, when those polled were asked whether they would support his re-election bid against a Democratic candidate, down from 12 points a month ago. Democratic presidential candidates have hammered at Bush on his handling of Iraq. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said Monday that U.S. troops are paying the price for Bush's failure to build an international coalition for postwar Iraq: "It is clear now that he didn't do that sufficiently. In that regard, the American people were let down." Another Democratic presidential contender, Rep. Richard Gephardt of Missouri, said he hears frequently during the campaign about people's economic worries. College students can't find jobs, and older workers with high-paying manufacturing jobs are concerned their companies will move overseas, Gephardt told USA TODAY and Gannett News Service. "The economic issues are really beginning to take hold," he said. But Republican pollster Whit Ayres said the drop in Bush's ratings was a routine "settling" of numbers that were artificially high after the Iraq war. Ayres said "59% approval is a number many presidents would die for." The weakness of Bush and the GOP on the economy is merely an expression of frustration at the pace of economic recovery, he said. "All of that can change in a heartbeat." Find this article at: usatoday.com