They've been wishing and hoping over at the White House that their scare tactics would start the bounce. The media's been expecting it. But, it ain't happening according to yet another poll we found via Political Wire:
"The strong focus on news from abroad is having little impact on the public's political opinions. President Bush's job approval rating stands at 37%, virtually unchanged from July. His personal image continues to be far less positive than it was about a year ago about half the public says he is not a strong leader, not trustworthy, and unable to get things done. Moreover, the renewed emphasis on terrorism has done little to boost the president's standing on that issue."Not a strong leader, not trustworthy and unable to get things done. Throw in screws up everything he does try to get done and we've got an accurate picture of our President.
And, according to Pew's poll, things are looking too good for the Republicans on the Hill, either:
Voters continue to say they favor the Democratic candidate in their district, currently by a 50% to 41% margin. This reflects overwhelming loyalty among both Democrats and Republicans, combined with the fact that independent voters currently favor the Democratic candidate in their district by a 48% to 34% margin.All that tough GOP talk about staying the course is having an impact -- a negative impact:
Anti-incumbent sentiment remains remarkably high. Three-in-ten say they do not want the representative in their district to be reelected, largely unchanged from surveys earlier this year and significantly more than expressed this view in the 2002 or 1998 midterms. In recent years, only polling on the eve of the 1994 midterm election registered this level of anti-incumbent voting.
Fully 46% of Americans say they are very concerned that if Republicans keep control of the Congress this fall they will get the country involved in too many military missions. By comparison, just over a third (35%) say they are very concerned that if Democrats take control of the Congress this fall they will weaken the country's efforts to combat terrorism.Keep staying the course, GOP. Keep staying the course.
