The New York Times chart of Bush’s approval and disapproval ratings, resembles a Christmas tree, appropriately enough considering his religious ties. Despite being Jewish, I adore this “Christmas tree.” It represents the American people’s growing awareness and disillusionment with all the doublespeak and propaganda Bush’s cabinet has been feeding us.
Since the start of combat in Iraq in March of 2003, approximately 735 American soldiers have been killed in action. This month alone 134 of those soldiers died and as of press time the month wasn’t over. The next highest monthly death toll was 82 in November 2003. April’s toll is 150 percent higher (www.lunaville.org and math). This astronomical rise in the casualty rate has caused many to cast a much more critical look at President Bush’s handling of things in Iraq and at home.
The most recent New York Times / CBS polls show a great decline in Bush support. Positive responses to the question “do you think the United States made a mistake getting involved in the current war against Iraq?” in March 2003 was 46 percent. Today it is 70 percent. The numbers of those polled who thought it was a mistake to wage war (a meager 24 percent in March 2003) have doubled to 48 percent, slightly higher than the number of those polled who still have no regrets about going to war.
The survey also dealt with various key issues in Bush’s re-election campaign. The issues Bush is losing steam on are his work on foreign policy and Iraq. The approval ratings on these issues are both down to just about 40 percent, having dropped off by half and currently trailing behind the disapproval rating (which more than doubled from its low point of 20 percent on both issues).
Though there had been a steady line of indifference for Bush’s first year in office after a brief stint of increased approval his popularity has consistently declined.
He hit his biggest popularity spike to date just after September 11 2001 with his approval rising to over 80 percent. Then, once the period in which speaking out against the President would get one beaten up had passed, Bush’s approval rating dropped consistently from January 2002 all the way through February 2003, bottoming out at around 55 percent. He received a fleeting popularity spike at the start of his war in Iraq in March 2003, his approval rising to about 70 percent, but then began dropping off again that April. One April later, Bush’s approval rating is at its lowest point ever: about 44 percent. In fact, the approval and disapproval lines on the polls have met and seem to be kissing. Eww.
It’s possible that people have begun paying attention to the number of Iraqi civilians to die since the start of this war. The number is between 8,958 and 10,810 (according to www.iraqbodycount.net), dwarfing the 735 American deaths. Remember, these are the unfortunate civilians who Bush was allegedly so concerned about and are the whole reason we’re at war!
Dan Goldstein can be contacted at [email protected]