George Bush Poll – A “Titanic” for Republican presidential candidates
Ian Brockwell
May 05, 2007
The latest Newsweek Poll shows the public’s approval of George Bush has fallen to an all-time low of just 28 percent, equaling that of Jimmy Carter in 1979, and one point lower than his father achieved.
It was perhaps no coincidence that the Republican presidential candidates only mentioned Bush’s name once, during their first major debate this week, with Ronald Reagan’s name coming up 19 times!
The poll asked 1,000 adults who they felt showed the greatest political courage (brave enough to risk their popularity with decisions made for the country). A few years ago the result would have been fairly predictable, but the winners on this occasion were Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton with 18 percent each, followed by John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln. George Bush was a mere “also ran” with just 4 percent.
Bush’s unpopularity has clearly affected the Republican candidates, who are all trailing the leading Democrats in the race for the White House.
It will be interesting to see how the Republican hopefuls try to overcome their leader’s poor ratings, which has become like a stone around their necks. Can they really distance themselves from Bush, as it would seem they must, after giving him such unquestionable support for so many years?
It has been suggested that with only 25 percent of Americans satisfied with the way things are going in the United States, voters will be keen to elect a leader with new ideas. Unfortunately, the American public is probably asking themselves “Has anyone got any new ideas?”
Most of the Republican candidates will be forced to continue their support for the war in Iraq or risk been called “Flip Floppers”, but this unpopular war is unlikely to win many votes. Some Democrats have also sealed their fate by either supporting the war in some way, or not speaking out against it strongly enough in the past.
Perhaps what the country really needs is a completely new face, a person who has not been involved in all the wrangling of the past and is prepared to concentrate on policies that benefit the American people more. A person that is not interested in starting wars or getting involved in other people’s fights.
Such a person (if he or she exists), should be given every support, no matter what party they belong to.
It was perhaps no coincidence that the Republican presidential candidates only mentioned Bush’s name once, during their first major debate this week, with Ronald Reagan’s name coming up 19 times!
The poll asked 1,000 adults who they felt showed the greatest political courage (brave enough to risk their popularity with decisions made for the country). A few years ago the result would have been fairly predictable, but the winners on this occasion were Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton with 18 percent each, followed by John F. Kennedy and Abraham Lincoln. George Bush was a mere “also ran” with just 4 percent.
Bush’s unpopularity has clearly affected the Republican candidates, who are all trailing the leading Democrats in the race for the White House.
It will be interesting to see how the Republican hopefuls try to overcome their leader’s poor ratings, which has become like a stone around their necks. Can they really distance themselves from Bush, as it would seem they must, after giving him such unquestionable support for so many years?
It has been suggested that with only 25 percent of Americans satisfied with the way things are going in the United States, voters will be keen to elect a leader with new ideas. Unfortunately, the American public is probably asking themselves “Has anyone got any new ideas?”
Most of the Republican candidates will be forced to continue their support for the war in Iraq or risk been called “Flip Floppers”, but this unpopular war is unlikely to win many votes. Some Democrats have also sealed their fate by either supporting the war in some way, or not speaking out against it strongly enough in the past.
Perhaps what the country really needs is a completely new face, a person who has not been involved in all the wrangling of the past and is prepared to concentrate on policies that benefit the American people more. A person that is not interested in starting wars or getting involved in other people’s fights.
Such a person (if he or she exists), should be given every support, no matter what party they belong to.
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