Bush Approval At This Point Lowest in 56 Years

[Doug]

WASHINGTON — Another day, another scandal. The Justice Department's improper and illegal use of the USA Patriot Act has Attorney General Alberto Gonzales in trouble, an all-too-familiar circumstance for President George W. Bush's inner circle.

The last thing a troubled president needs is another friend in trouble.

"This strikes me as another blow for the administration," said Republican consultant Joe Gaylord.

...Lawmakers already were seething at the Justice Department for the firing of eight federal prosecutors and Gonzales' dismissive response to critics.

"One day there will be a new attorney general, maybe sooner rather than later," Specter said Thursday.

It is too soon to tell whether Gonzales, a close Texas friend of Bush, might be forced to leave. Even his ouster, however, would do little to change a perception that the Bush administration is unraveling amid declining public support and trust. Some big names already have had to leave.

Donald H. Rumsfeld was forced to resign after Democrats seized control of Congress in fall elections that were a repudiation of Bush's policies on Iraq.

I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, a powerful adviser to Vice President Dick Cheney, left the White House to face perjury charges in the investigation of the exposure of a CIA official...

Jim Nicholson, secretary of Veterans Affairs and former Republican Party chairman, is clinging to his job amid revelations of shoddy treatment for wounded troops from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.

The latest events are more heavy baggage for a president who already is close to his limit...

With a rating of just 35 percent, Bush's standing is the weakest of any second-term president at this point in 56 years.

See here.

[Barbara Fitzpatrick]

W doesn't care. He can't run again, he's beaten out his daddy on several counts, and only a military refusal to obey orders can stop him from escalating Iraq or attacking Iran, since even without the supplementary budget he has enough money to continue his "course" (by stealing it from other programs the money was originally allocated for). He thinks he's above the law (remember the reason Clinton was impeached - presidents are not above the law - actually, with the Clinton's it was presidents are considerably below the law and are not entitle to any protection offered by it). History, as written by his "library" will vindicate him.

[Hogeye]

... he [Bush] has enough money to continue his "course" (by stealing it from other programs the money was originally allocated for).

Actually, that's not generally how funding works. He steals money by the debt and fiat money inflation process - the insidious invisible theft that defers the inevitable pain and cost until someone else's administration. If someday it falls on the children or results in hyperinflation and economic catastrophe, well, that's not his problem. Hans-Hermann Hoppe wrote a book addressing this theme: Democracy: The God That Failed. Whatever advantages democracy has, one disadvantage is that the rulers are temporary stewards (rather than owners), and thus are tempted to think and act short-range, and defer costs to outside their horizon of office.

[Dardedar]

Bush Approval Rating Falls to 28%, Lowest Level So Far, in Harris Poll

The Wall Street Journal Online

President Bush's approval rating slipped to new lows in the most recent Harris Interactive survey,...

Of the 1,001 American adults polled online April 20-23, only 28% had a positive view of Mr. Bush's job performance, down from 32% in February and from a high of 88% in the aftermath of the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The current rating is his weakest showing since his inauguration.