Next Up: Truman
Bush Equals Jimmy Carter’s Low 29% Approval
Pierre Tristam / Candide’s Notebooks, July 10, 2007

He thanks god for 9/11 every day

The Gallup Poll, among the most conservative out there, has George Bush hitting a new low in his approval, at 29 percent, equaling Jimmy Carter’s several 29 percent ratings between July and October 1979, in the middle of the Iran hostage crisis, and, of course, his own father's forgotten 29 percent in late 1992. Yes yes, Carter actually dipped to 28 percent in one reading, but it's a given that Bush will match that and sink on. Next goal for Bush, who always wants to be Number 1: Best Harry Truman’s 22 percent in February 1952. At this rate, it’s doable. On Monday, he let the world know that he wasn’t budging on Iraq beyond making the usual cosmetic changes. He’ll pull out a brigade or two that’s scheduled for pull-out anyway and call it a drawdown. He’ll “redeploy” another few brigades away from hellholes where they’re getting clobbered anyway and call it a “post-surge reconfiguration.”

This, too, is notable, as reported by the Post: "Bush and Congress have suffered a decline in support from almost every part of the conservative coalition over the past year, a trend that has accelerated with alarming implications for Bush's governing strategy." Specificaklly, Gallup says, "Republicans' ratings of Bush are down five percentage points since mid-June. The 68% approval among members of his own party ties with a measure obtained in May 2006 as the lowest of his administration. As 2007 began, 79% of Republicans approved of the job Bush was doing as president."

Gallup notes that it has “recorded 1,325 presidential job approval ratings since 1938, and only 42 -- or 3% -- have been below 30%. Only 32 job approval ratings have been below 29%.” Here’s the list:

Bottom Line, says Gallup: "President Bush's job approval rating -- now at 29% -- has fallen to the lowest point of his administration and is within seven percentage points of the lowest job approval rating in Gallup Poll history. Bush's job ratings have dropped 61 percentage points since the all time high point of 90% in September 2001," most precipitous drop ever recorded going back to the Neolithic.