Bush's job approval rating drops to 26%

June 22nd, 2007 2:37 pm
Bush's job approval rating drops to 26%


By Kenneth R. Bazinet / New York Daily News

WASHINGTON - President Bush's job approval rating has sunk so low that he could end up south of Richard Nixon's worst Watergate numbers.

Bush's approval rating dipped to a dismal 26% in the latest Newsweek poll released yesterday.

The handling of the Iraq war and uncertainty about the economy are the biggest drains for Bush, who could break all records for the worst presidential job-approval rating.

Bush has plummeted beneath his father George H.W. Bush's lowest approval rating of 29%, which came amid economic recession. Dubya even rates worse than Jimmy Carter did during the Iran hostage crisis of 1979-1980, when his support fell to 28%.

If the slide continues, Bush could challenge Nixon's lowest job rating of 23%, which came amid the Watergate scandal.

Bush peaked in early 2002, when his job approval rating in the Newsweek poll hit 83%, attributed to his handling of the early aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

He's not the only pol with failing grades in Washington: Congress as a whole is faring even worse, with a 25% job approval rating, according to Newsweek.