GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- Americans are evenly divided in their rating of President George W. Bush's handling of the economy, with 48% indicating their approval and 50% their disapproval. But more generally, a substantial majority, 58%, believe the president is not paying enough attention to the economy, while just 40% say he is paying the right amount. By contrast, relatively few Americans believe that Bush is not spending enough time on Iraq or the war on terrorism.
These are the results of a Gallup Poll conducted July 7-9, which also found that Bush's overall approval rating is 62%, the same as his average rating for the month of June, but nine points lower than the rating he received shortly after the fall of Saddam Hussein.
Unlike his overall performance ratings, Bush's economy ratings have been tepid at best this whole year, with divided opinion measured in most of the 12 polls since January. His highest ratings were in late March, shortly after the war with Iraq began (52% approve to 42% disapprove), and again in early May (53% to 44%).
| George W. Bush's Job of Handling the Economy -- 2003 |
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In the last two months, his approval has slipped by five points and disapproval has increased by six.
Perhaps more importantly, a majority of Americans believe the president is not paying enough attention to the economy. About six in 10 express that opinion, not much different from the figures measured in two polls last January. It is possible that during the Iraq war, there was a surge toward a more favorable opinion of Bush on this question, as there was with his economy rating. But if so, the surge was clearly temporary -- the late January and current figures are very similar.
| How Much Attention is President Bush Paying to the Economy? |
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The numbers this year represent a major turn-around in public opinion over the last year and a half. In January 2002, 64% said the president was paying the right amount of attention to the economy. In a July 2002 Gallup Poll, 53%, expressed that view.
Bush Fares Better on International Issues
The public has a more positive reaction to Bush's handling of foreign affairs -- 55% approve and 42% disapprove. These figures are roughly where they were earlier this year prior to the beginning of the war with Iraq, but down about 10 percentage points from the ratings he received during the height of the Iraq war.
| George W. Bush's Job of Handling Foreign Affairs -- 2003 |
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Similarly, 58% approve, while 39% disapprove, of the way Bush is handling the situation with Iraq. Again, these figures are roughly back where they were in the first three months of the year, but down from as high as 76% at the height of the war.
| George W. Bush's Job of Handling Iraq Situation |
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The poll also shows that a majority of Americans believe the president is paying the right amount of attention to the war on terrorism, and on the situation in Iraq. Those who disagree tend to divide almost equally between those who say he is paying too much, and those who say he is paying too little, attention.
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| July 7-9, 2003 |
Not surprisingly, responses to all of these questions are highly related to party affiliation. In general, the Republicans show large majorities taking a pro-Bush position, while independents and Democrats take a more critical position toward Bush -- the independents moderately critical, while the Democrats are very critical.
Survey Methods
Results are based on telephone interviews with 1,006 national adults, aged 18+, conducted July 7-9, 2003. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points.
In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
54. Do you think President Bush is paying – [ROTATED: too much attention, about the right amount of attention, or not enough attention] – to – [ITEMS A-B ROTATED, FOLLOWED BY ITEM C]?
A. The war on terrorism
|
Too much |
Right amount |
Not enough |
No opinion |
||
|
% |
% |
% |
% |
||
|
2003 Jul 7-9 |
20 |
61 |
18 |
1 |
|
|
2003 Jan 31-Feb 2 ^ |
20 |
61 |
17 |
2 |
|
|
2003 Jan 10-12 ^ |
25 |
59 |
14 |
2 |
|
|
2002 Jul 26-28 † |
14 |
70 |
15 |
1 |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 † |
7 |
84 |
8 |
1 |
|
|
^ |
Asked of a half sample. (Respondents not asked item B) |
||||
|
† |
Asked of a full sample and rotated with item B. Trend results show when question was asked first in rotation. |
||||
B. The economy
|
Too much |
Right amount |
Not enough |
No opinion |
||
|
% |
% |
% |
% |
||
|
2003 Jul 7-9 |
1 |
40 |
58 |
1 |
|
|
2003 Jan 31-Feb 2 ^ |
2 |
37 |
60 |
1 |
|
|
2003 Jan 10-12 ^ |
2 |
41 |
55 |
2 |
|
|
2002 Jul 26-28 † |
1 |
53 |
43 |
3 |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 † |
2 |
64 |
31 |
3 |
|
|
^ |
Asked of a half sample. (Respondents not asked item A) |
||||
|
† |
Asked of a full sample and rotated with Q.7. Trend results show when question was asked first in rotation. |
||||
C. The situation with Iraq
|
Too much |
Right amount |
Not enough |
No opinion |
|
|
2003 Jul 7-9 |
24% |
57 |
17 |
2 |
