Posted on 10/08/2005 7:35:16 PM PDT by neverdem
Poll finds fears about gas prices, Iraq, the economy and disaster costs
Associated Press
WASHINGTON - Evangelicals, Republican women, Southerners and other critical groups in President Bush's political coalition are worried about the direction the nation is headed and disappointed with his performance, an AP-Ipsos poll found.
That unease could be a troubling sign for a White House already struggling to keep the Republican Party base from slipping over Supreme Court nominee Harriet Miers, Gulf Coast spending projects, immigration and other issues.
"Politically, this is very serious for the president," said James Thurber, a political scientist at American University. "If the base of his party has lost faith, that could spell trouble for his policy agenda and for the party generally."
Sentiment about the nation's direction has sunk to new depths at a time people are anxious about Iraq, the economy, gas prices and the management of billions of dollars being spent for recovery from natural disasters.
Only 28 percent say the country is headed in the right direction while two-thirds, 66 percent, say it is on the wrong track, the poll found.
"There is a growing, deep-seated discontentment and pessimism about the direction of the country," said Republican strategist Tony Fabrizio.
Supporters uneasy
Among those most likely to have lost confidence about the nation's direction over the past year are white evangelicals, down 30 percentage points since November, Republican women, down 28 points, Southerners, down 26 points, and suburban men, down 20 points.
Bush's supporters are uneasy about issues such as federal deficits, immigration and his latest nomination for the Supreme Court. Social conservatives are concerned about his choice of Miers, a relatively unknown lawyer who has served as White House counsel.
The president's job approval is mired at the lowest level of his presidency — 39 percent. While four of five Republicans say they approve of Bush's job performance — enthusiasm has dipped over the last year.
Party backing slips
In December 2004, soon after his re-election, almost two-thirds of Republicans strongly approved of the job done by Bush. The AP-Ipsos survey found that just half in his own party feel that way now.
The poll of 1,000 adults was conducted by Ipsos, an international polling company, from Monday to Wednesday and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Nope, not even close. We only have about three million people in the state total.
But we do have plenty immigrants, legal and illegal.
You want to arrest all five million in the nation and repatriate them to Mexico?
Good luck.
How are you gonna separate them from the legal ones?
I was disappointed with the choice of Miers, but it's water under the bridge now. I don't see any profit in bashing the President about Miers. Please take a gander at what I wrote in comment# 93.
When the going gets tough, the rodents wimp out.
Parkinson's?
I bet you sweat bullets sitting at red lights wondering if the darn thing will ever turn green again.
(Waiting for the next insult from the *cough* preacher.
Might as well go with a national ID. The Bill of Rights is toast anyway.
Remember BT, we are a republic, not a monarchy. I'm glad Bill Clinton was restrained by the mechanics of our nation's government.
Doesn't that suck. Since I was a kid, I have been warned about the mark of the Beast. I don't like it worth a damn.
Don't give up on the strength of our Bill of Rights though. It has withstood some serious sh*t in the last 200 years.
(Denny Crane: "Sometimes you can only look for answers from God and failing that... and Fox News".)
Yep!
Neverdem, Miers will be water under the bridge when she's finally on the bench. But she's low on my list of Presidential criticisms for not being the aggressive Conservative I was hoping he'd be in his second term.
Good luck.
How are you gonna separate them from the legal ones?
Evidently you are from the "they all look alike" school. Here in California we don't have as much trouble as you do sorting out hispanic Americans from Mexican and Central American nationals.
As far as arresting every illegal, it isn't necessary. When the INS began enforcing the law out here in just one city the results were obvious. They will return to their country if the law is being enforced.
Illegals are coming here because they know that currently there is no intention of enforcing the law. There is in effect no border control, and they stand an excellent chance of being rewarded with amnesty for breaking the law. It's the policy you advocate that has developed into an enormous problem in the Southwest. And it will spread to your part of the country. Perhaps when English is optional in your little State you'll appreciate that you didn't know what you were encouraging.
"Bush is one of the better Presidents we have ever had."
For foreign policy I agree wholeheartedly.
For domestic policy it is a very mixed bag at best. The entire gun control thing appears to have died for the moment, and some judges are being appointed by him to various federal courts. He likes to cut taxes, though the other side of that equation has completely eluded him.
On the other hand, he shows NO will to put any brakes on congressional spending. He likes new government programs that will cost hundreds of billions eventually.
I think the spending issue is the killer. Increasing the federal debt 30% already is not acceptable. I would rather have clinton-level taxes and clinton-level gridlock on spending.
"I agree that I would like to see a fix for illegal immigration and the federal spending. I just don't see where he has much chance of doing much on either one."
On the first, he has gone out of his way to indicate that his fix is to make the illegals legal. BushGov WANTS increased population by immigrants. The state of the southern border the last 4 years, despite the patriot act, the TSA, and other stuff used to keep track of citizens, is a clear indication that he is on the other team.
As far as spending, he never saw a spending bill he didn't like.
Wait a second, thats a cheap shot. We've already had the debate locally on bilingualism, etc. Latins have flocked to our area for the new home construction particularly.
Don't feel like the "Lone Ranger". This is a problem everywhere. Sure you got it worse than we do. But if I'm not mistaken, your dumb*ss state wouldn't let the INS do sweeps in the outskirts of San Diego(?).
California is gonna have to save itself. You get your legislature on board with closing the border, then bitch at the President.
He never saw a spending bill he was willing to fight. Big difference. The Republicans control the Congress. They are spending what they want to.
On illegal immigration, he wants illegals identified, the heck with whether they are made remain illegal or not.
It is a question in my mind of doing something or nothing. At least he is trying to do something.
For goodness sakes, the Senate just voted overwhelmingly to put more restrictions on the military guidelines for treatment of prisoners!
These guys couldn't pass conservative gas.
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