Personnel changes at the White House may ultimately pay off for George W. Bush, but the announcement of the changes doesn't seem to be helping yet: Two new polls hand the president his lowest approval ratings to date.
The new USA Today/Gallup poll puts Bush's approval rating at 34 percent, down two points from mid-April to the lowest number of his presidency. Majorities disapprove of the way Bush is handling Iraq, the economy, foreign affairs, immigration, energy and terrorism, and majorities say these characteristics don't apply to the president: "picks good people for key leadership positions," is "honest and trustworthy," "shares your values," "cares about people like you," and "can manage the government effectively."
The latest CBS News poll puts the president's approval rating at 33 percent, an all-time low for him in that poll, too.
CBS says that 58 percent of the public disapproves of the job Bush is doing overall, and it notes that the president has "extremely low approval ratings" on the issues that matter to Americans most. Seventy-four percent of the poll's respondents -- and 56 percent of the Republicans surveyed -- disapprove of the way Bush is handling rising gas prices; 64 percent of respondents disapprove of the way Bush is handling the war in Iraq; and 58 percent disapprove of the way Bush is handling the economy. Overall, CBS says, 71 percent of respondents think the United States is headed in the wrong direction -- a number that's two points worse than the results CBS measured in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Shares