Yes, GWB is looking better and better!
George W. Bush’s approval rating just hit a 7-year high. Here’s how.Posted by Chris Cillizza and Sean Sullivan on April 23, 2013
Christian Science MonitorDays before the official opening of his presidential library, George W. Bush is experiencing something of a comeback when it comes to his public image.
Almost as many people (47 percent) approve of how Bush handled his eight years in office as disapprove (50 percent), according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. That’s the highest approval rating for Bush since December 2005. Bush’s approval dipped all the way to 23 percent in Post-ABC polling in October 2008 and was just 33 percent in January 2009 when he left office. (His approval rating was below 40 percent for 26 consecutive months before his term ended, the longest streak of sub-40 presidential ratings since polling began in the 1930s.)
And, what’s fascinating is that it’s not just Bush’s overall job approval numbers but the intensity measures. In the new Post-ABC poll, 34 percent say they “strongly” disapprove of the job he did while in office; that’s the lowest strong disapprove number for Bush since January 2005.
Bush’s biggest gains over the past few years have come among seniors (30 percent approval in 2008, 57 percent approval today), non-college whites (34 percent in 2008, 57 percent now) and moderate/conservative Democrats (10 percent in 2008, 33 percent now).
Who hasn’t changed their views of Bush? African Americans (90 percent disapproval in 2008, 84 percent disapproval now) and Democrats (90 percent disapproval in ’08, 73 percent now).
Here’s a chart — courtesy of the good people at Capital Insight — detailing the comparison between Bush’s aggregate 2008 numbers and his showing in the new Post-ABC poll across a variety of subgroups.
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