Voters Don't Want Bush Re-Elected - Poll

Voice of America ^ | 8/24/03

[truthandlife]

The majority of American voters would not like to see President Bush re-elected to another term according to a poll by Newsweek magazine.

The survey released Saturday showed that 49 percent of registered voters would not back the president for a second term if the vote were held now. Forty-four percent would support Mr. Bush's re-election.

The poll marked the first time in a Newsweek survey that supporters of Mr. Bush were out-numbered by those who would not like to see him back remain in office. In April, 52 percent of voters backed the president for a second term, while 38 percent did not.

The Newsweek report attributed the decline in the president's popularity to public disenchantment over the Iraq war. The poll found 69 percent of respondents said they were concerned that the United States will be bogged down for many years in Iraq without achieving its goals there.

Nearly half of those polled said they were concerned that the cost of the war will lead to a large budget deficit and seriously impact the U.S. economy. And more than half said they thought the estimated $1 billion per week the United States is paying for the war effort is too much and should be scaled back.

However, 61 percent still believe the United States was right to take military action against Iraq in March.

Only 18 percent of those polled believe a stable, democratic government can be set up in Iraq in the long term. And only 13 percent of respondents said U.S. efforts to establish security in Iraq and rebuild the country have gone well since May 1, when combat officially ended.

The Newsweek poll results are based on telephone interviews with more than one thousand adults aged 18 and older. It was conducted on August 21 and 22. The margin of error is plus or minus three percent.

[Radix]

In your dreams Newsweek, in your dreams!

[xzins]

Conservatives are demoralized over the terrible news of this past summer.

[Peach]

And Newsweek never skewed a poll. Never once.

[Rome2000]

What terrible news are you talking about?

[verity]

I still do not believe in polls.

[demkicker]

...and the socialist beat goes on. </ Yawn>

[Gorzaloon]

In your dreams Newsweek, in your dreams!

Another article typed by the unoccupied hand.

[Apple Pan Dowdy]

If a pollster came up to me and asked, "are you totally happy with the way Bush is handling both foreign AND domestic affairs?".... I would have to answer, "well NO!". Then the pollster might say, "Then do you want to see Bush reelected?".... I might answer, "If he is the Republican candidate, then yes, but I would prefer a republican who would do more to protect our borders from illegal immegration for instance."

The pollster would then mark me down as a "NO" for Bush, when that is not really what I said. Bottom line: POLLS ARE SKEWED!

[goldstategop]

Yep. And a year is a LOOOOOOOOOOONG time.

[Catspaw]

I'll start paying attention to polls in October, 2004.

[truthandlife]

The Christian right has a list of complaints with the Bush policy on homosexuality -- from White House and top-level GOP meetings with gay groups to Bush's signing a District of Columbia appropriations bill that funded benefits for unmarried domestic partners.

The White House said that global warming is indeed a problem and caused by humans. That was troubling.

On the issue of steel tariffs, suddenly Bush who was a free trader during his campaign is supporting steep steel tariffs, traditionally something Democrats might do. And he looks like a big spender in terms of agricultural subsidies. He signed a farm bill recently that really would put Bill Clinton to shame.

On the Middle East, after vowing to avoid the job of a peacemaker, again not wanting to look like Bill Clinton, he's dived into that situation and his administration is heavily involved in that. He is supporting "the Road Map" that Bill Clinton would not have even endorsed. Telling the Israelis to restrain themselves after women and children get blown up by terrorists.

Conservatives are also pointing to things like research on embryos. On the campaign trail, he said he wasn't going to support that and he has to some extent, and also the fact that he backed away from supporting school vouchers in his education bill. So a lot of things that are making a lot of true conservatives very uncomfortable.

And finally, campaign finance reform: On the campaign trail he said he thought campaign finance reform was unconstitutional and then he signed that into law.


Karl Rove, White House political director, told a meeting of the American Enterprise Institute in 2001 that 4 million fundamentalists and evangelicals didn't turn out to vote in 2000, almost costing Bush the presidency.

Religious conservatives also are upset with Bush's push to send $15 billion to Africa for AIDS prevention. He dismissed a bid by conservative Christians to restrict the initiative to fight AIDS to only those programs that reject abortion and promote abstinence.

Christian right voters played a pivotal role in electing Bush in his razor-thin victory over Al Gore. He cannot afford to lose them in 2004.

[prairiebreeze]

Third year numbers are VERY typically the lowest in any Presidents term. They were for Reagan as well as Clinturd. GW's numbers are will quite a bit above the levels that those two ex-Pres. were at this point in time.

Prairie

[The Wizard]

Maybe it's good this crap keeps coming out....it builds the momentum for a BIG WIN

[montag813]

Perhaps if Bush threw the Road Map into the garbage, made a few judicial nominee recess appointments, and actually had something to say about the awful recent ruling sof the Supreme Sodomists, then his base would be more excited.

[Thom Pain]

"The poll marked the first time in a Newsweek survey that supporters of Mr. Bush were out-numbered by those who would not like to see him back remain (sic) in office."

Try, try, try again...

Wonder how many polls it took them before they got the outcome they wanted.

[Cedric]

I am excited by this poll! Perhaps Hillary Clinton will believe it and be lured into the race in '04. Then W can whip her fat, ugly butt and put an end to the media's conjured-up mystique about the Clintons for once-and-for-all. W is Michael Corleone: He settles all familly accounts.

[NordP]

"The majority of American voters would not like to see President Bush re-elected to another term according to a poll by Newsweek magazine."

...And the L.A. Times is telling us that the Recall is losing steam, too.

Consider the sources, people -- 'nuf said!

NordP

[dagnabbit]

Hispanics are natural conservatives; Bush's admission of millions to the country will give him a landslide reelection and the GOP an enduring majority.
/sarcasm

[grania]

The majority of American voters would not like to see President Bush re-elected to another term according to a poll by Newsweek magazine.

The survey released Saturday showed that 49 percent of registered voters would not back the president for a second term if the vote were held now. Forty-four percent would support Mr. Bush's re-election.

Uhhhhhhh....isnt' a majority still something greater that 50%?