February 28, 2006

It’s sure nice to see Bush’s poll numbers drop near the freezing mark, all the way down to 34 percent, according to a new CBS poll.

I’ve always wondered what it would take to get some of those Bush supporters to peel off.

I used to think you’d need to have photos of Bush running naked through the Rose Garden chasing a little boy.

Turns out that a crony deal to Dubai Ports World has done part of the trick, since it hits Bush where it hurts: with his tough-on-terrorism crowd. Only 21% of the American public supports letting a UAE company operate U.S. ports, according to CBS, and even 58% of Republicans oppose the deal.

The Iraq War is also proving to be Bush’s undoing. That same CBS poll shows only 30 percent approval for his handling of Iraq. A whopping 63 percent say the war has not been worth the cost. (And of a list of 15 issues, the Iraq War was the one that a plurality of Americans said was “the most important problem” facing the country, with 24%citing it, versus 13% citing “economy/jobs” and 9% terrorism. “Health care” and “Bush” were next with 5% each.)

Even the troops want the U.S. to get out of Iraq.

According to a Le Moyne College/Zogby International poll, 72 percent of them think the U.S. should pack up within a year. More than half think we should get out within six months: 29% said “immediately,” and 22% said in the next six months.

(Those serving in Iraq remain confused about why Bush put them there. An astronomical 85% said they were there “to retaliate for Saddam’s role in the 9/11 attacks,” though he played no role. And 77% said they were there “to stop Saddam from protecting Al Qaeda in Iraq,” though there were no operational links between Saddam and Al Qaeda, according to the 9/11 Commission.)

With discontent in the ranks and among the public, Bush is fast losing the popularity needed to govern and command effectively, though he never had the ability to do so in the first place.

Only 17% of the American public says Bush cares about people like them, according to the CBS poll. And his unfavorable to favorable rating is at a dismal 53% to 29% level. (Cheney’s is also abysmal: 46% unfavorable to 18% favorable.)

America is finally waking up to Bush’s incompetence, cronyism, recklessness, and lawlessness.

It’s been a long slumber.