Bush Speaks and.........

Maybe it's time to keep George Bush quiet. First there was the Social Security piratization plan; every time he talked about it his numbers went down. Now it's Iraq; after his Tuesday night pep rally Zogby shows his approval rating hitting a new low. Only 43% of Americans approve of the way he is doing his job, down 1% from last week. There are other significant numbers in the poll:

In a more significant sign of the weakness of the President's numbers, more "Red State" voters-that is, voters living in the states that cast their ballots for the Bush-Cheney ticket in 2004-now rate his job performance unfavorably, with 50% holding a negative impression of the President's handling of his duties, and 48% holding a favorable view. The President also gets negative marks from one-in-four (25%) Republicans-as well as 86% of Democrats and 58% of independents. (Bush nets favorable marks from 75% of Republicans, 13% of Democrats and 40% of independents.)

The unfavorable results in the "Red States" has to be troublesome to those Republicans seeking re-election in 2006. If Bush's numbers continue to sink expect to see more and more lawmakers trying to distance themselves from him. Since there is no reason to believe that things are going to improve in Iraq between now and 2006 and Bush has no new plan so expect increasing pressure from the Republican congress.
Zogby also asked about impeachment. I think the only thing significant about the results is that Zogby asked the question.