WASHINGTON, 19 September 2003 — A majority of Americans believe President Bush is “in over his head,” according to a new survey by Democracy Corps, a polling and strategy firm founded by Democratic strategist James Carvel.
Carvel told reporters yesterday that Bush’s high post Sept. 11 approval ratings had dropped and the president now has the lowest opinion ratings he has had in his term in office.
The Democracy Corps survey shows Americans are open to Democratic changes. A majority of voters said they no longer trust Bush on the question of Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction, and 54 percent polled said he “does not have a plan to win the peace and bring American troops home.”
Nor does the poll appear slanted to represent Democratic interests. Republican pollsters have also shown the same disappointment in the presidency.
A Winton Group poll taken for House Republicans and released last week found voters believe the nation is on the wrong track by a 51-37 margin.
But Republican leaders say they are not worried. Republican National Committee spokesman Jim Dyke last week said the past two presidents to win re-elections had lower job-approval ratings at the same point in their first terms.
President Ronald Reagan polled 47 percent approval in 1983, and President Bill Clinton in 1995 polled 44 percent.
The Democracy Corps poll shows Bush with a 53-point job-approval rating.
A Democracy Corps poll taken before the tragedies of Sept. 11, shows Bush has fallen 10 points on honesty and trustworthiness, and Republicans have dropped 17 percentage points on deficits, and 9 points on the economy - which those polled said took precedent over foreign affairs.
Additionally, 48 percent said they feel Bush is “in over his head.”
“The real story is not so much the decline in the number of Americans approving of Bush’s job in office but the recent sharp spike in those disapproving of his performance, up to 42 percent this month, 2 points higher than early Sept. 2001,” said Karl Ange, an analyst for Democracy Corps.
“Bush’s handling of the economy and jobs continues to drag him down more than any other issue, even as ratings of his job performance on Iraq and foreign policy in general continue to fall as well,” said Ange.
“For several months now, we have documented the continued support Americans express first and foremost for the troops in Iraq, but also for the decision to take military action and the goal of a stable, democratic Iraq,” said Ange.
“We have also tracked the growing doubts and frustrations expressed by Americans about the unknown cost and duration of our involvement, the mounting American casualties, the lack of adequate planning for the post-war effort, and the refusal to do what it takes to bring in international troops to share the burden of policing and rebuilding Iraq (supported by 85 percent of Americans).”
“A larger area of doubt is about the Bush administration’s failure to secure more international support in the war on terrorism. Seven-in-ten Americans say the war on terrorism must be a cooperative effort with other countries, but 57 percent in the ABC News poll say we have done a ‘not so good’ or ‘poor’ job of winning the cooperation of other countries in the fight against terrorism,” said Ange.
