President Bush has managed to achieve the second lowest all-time approval rating by a modern-era president. Americans are unmistakably fed up.

President George W. Bush welcomes Army General David Petraeus, incoming Commander of the Multi-National Force-Iraq, Friday, Jan. 26, 2007, to the Oval Office. White House photo by Eric Draper.

Bush by the Numbers

BY FRANK J. RANELLI

While fixated solely on a massively deteriorating situation in Iraq, Bush continues his irreverence and refuses to listen to the voice of America. Now, in a shockingly candid and irrefutable rejection of Bush’s imperialism, a new poll make clears American’s umbrage with their 43rd president.

01/23/07 "ICHBlog" As Americans grow wearier of Bush and his obsession with Iraq by the moment, his approval rating continues a grave and precipitous drop. Now, nearly three-fourths of the nation is in staunch disagreement with President Bush. Virtually in uncharted territory in terms of unpopularity, the only legacy Bush appears to have ensured for himself is unreserved failure.

Hours before President Bush’s State of the Union Address, American’s have finally grown overwhelmingly tired of a President who refuses to face reality or pay attention to the American public. Weary and drained over perpetual partisan bickering, an enormously unpopular war and a massive failure to tackle domestic and economic issues, a new CBS poll, taken January 23, 2007, reveals the disparaging depth of public displeasure for Bush.

Highlighted by a historic low in presidential approval rating, President Bush has managed to achieve the second lowest all-time approval rating by a modern-era president. This is second only to Richard Nixon, just before Nixon resigned amid the Watergate cover-up and scandal. Unlike politicians and presidents of the past and present, numbers never lie.

Indelible stained with a tragic failure to prevent the 9/11 attacks, rocked by immense intelligence meltdowns – that falsely led Americans to believe Iraq was a threat to the U.S. – a steady stream of disdain for the law and being forthright and honest, Americans are unmistakably fed up.

America voted for change in November. Now, they expect those changes, which the Bush administration has soundly ignored in an epic display of arrogance, contempt and hubris. As a result of Bush’s scorn for the will of an unequivocal message sent by voters, America is now in full-throat opposition and resentment. Yet Bush, who has never deftly performed his job on nearly every level, remains enigmatically publicly deaf and politically defiant.

Below, is a somber look at the culmination of Bush’s six years of perpetuating a climate of false fear, irrational faith over empirical facts and the absence of governance by logic and reason.


Noteworthy Numbers

NUMBER OF AMERICANS WHO THINK THE WAR IN IRAQ IS GOING BADLY:
75 percent

DOES BUSH SHARE YOUR PRIORITIES? 69 percent say, “NO”

SHOULD U.S. SEND 20,000 MORE TROOPS TO IRAQ? 66 percent say, “NO”

NUMBER OF AMERICANS WHO APPROVE OF BUSH'S JOB ON HANDLING THE ECONOMY:
37 percent

NUMBER OF AMERICANS WHO APPROVE OF BUSH'S JOB AS PRESIDENT:
28 percent (A new, all-time low for Bush and only Richard Nixon faired worse at 23 percent, just before he resigned.)

NUMBER OF AMERICANS WHO APPROVAL OF BUSH'S WAR ON TERROR:
28 percent

NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO APPROVAL OF BUSH'S HANDLING OF IRAQ:
24 percent

NUMBER OF AMERICANS WHO BELIEVE BUSH HAS A CLEAR PLAN FOR IRAQ:
24 percent

NUMBER OF PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE THE U.S. IS SAFER FROM TERRORISM UNDER BUSH
17 percent

Finally,

NUMBER OF AMERICANS WHO BELIEVE THE U.S. WILL SUCCEED IN IRAQ:
10 percent


Startling Stats:

- Lowest approval rating by a sitting war-time president: Lyndon Johnson during Vietnam in 1968: 35 percent.

- Eight out of ten Americans believe they can support the troops and still disagree with the war.

- Fifty-five percent of Americans want the President to focus on domestic issues and the economy as opposed to twenty-six who want the focus in Iraq.

- Sixty-five percent of Americans want Government-funded stem cell research.

- Seventy percent of Americans now see Global Warming as a serious issue.

- Ratio of Americans who believe the democratically-controlled 110th Congress will do a better job than the Republican-controlled 109th Congress: 2 to 1.

_______________________________
Source: CBS News POLL, January 22, 2007

Ranelli Rants is an independent political writer and author as well as an activist and advocate for the progression of peace and the advancement of the Democratic Party.