Republican Response

Hurricane Katrina has undoubtedly contributed to the downturn in the President's approval ratings.  The overall governmental response to this disaster was clearly inadequate, a fact President Bush has acknowledged.  Rightly or wrongly, the bulk of the mainstream media's criticism has focused on the federal government's response, with the President receiving the blame.  With a much stronger response to Hurricane Rita and the President demonstrating the take-charge attitude for which he is widely respected, his approval ratings can be expected to rebound shortly.  The fallout from Katrina will have no bearing on the gubernatorial race this November.

Given the mainstream media's obsession with covering only the bad news from Iraq, it is not surprising that support for the war is slipping.  One must also keep in mind, however, that the Administration's policy in Iraq is part of a long-term strategy to bring freedom to the people of the Middle East and provide greater security to all of us here at home.  The goals of this policy are truly breathtaking.  The success or failure of such a policy is best judged by history, not by analyzing short-term fluctuations in public opinion. 

Comment by Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind Academic Associate Michael P. Torpey (J.D., Seton Hall University School of Law). Michael is a former Chief of Staff to Governor Christine Todd Whitman and served as New Jersey Director of Campaign Operations for Bush-Cheney '04. Michael Torpey, Esq., can be reached at 609-394-0888.