Bush Withering in Garden State

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Republican Response
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The President's ratings continue to decline among Garden State voters, scoring poorly on both the economy and foreign policy.  According to the most recent results from the Fairleigh Dickinson University poll, 38% say the president is doing an excellent or good job while 61% rate his performance as only fair or poor. The 34% of New Jersey voters who rate his performance as poor is the worst showing of his presidency in a PublicMind poll.

When voters are asked to differentiate between the president's performance in foreign policy and his performance on the economy, he fares no better.  On foreign policy and national security 38% rate him excellent or good while 62% rate him only fair or poor (with 39% rating him poor).  On handling the economy, 33% give him a rating of excellent or good and 65% rate him as only fair or poor.

“Even if New Jersey is typically a blue state, New Jersey voters are in perfect sync with the rest of the nation,” said Peter Woolley, Executive Director of PublicMind and professor of political science at Fairleigh Dickinson University. “Nationwide polls also show the president's approval courting new lows.”

Also setting a new low is the percentage of voters who say the country is headed in the right direction: only 29% say the country is moving in the right direction while 58%, a new high, say it's “off on the wrong track.” But Republicans and Democrats differ remarkably on this question as they do with ratings of the President. A majority  (53%) of Republicans say the country is going in the right direction, and three quarters of Republicans (73%) rate the president's performance as excellent or good.  Meanwhile, four-fifths (79%) of Democrats say things are on the wrong track and a majority of Democrats (56%) rate the president's performance as poor.

“Nine months after a polarizing re-election, the voters are still polarized,” noted Woolley. “Discouraging news from Iraq in recent weeks reflects and amplifies partisan views.”

A majority of likely voters (54%) say the US military effort in Iraq is going “not too well” or “not well at all” while 46% say the effort is going very well or fairly well. But a majority (56%) say going to war in Iraq was a mistake while 38% say it was the right thing. Four-fifths (80%) of Democrats say it was a mistake; 69% of Republicans say it was the right thing.

Men and women differ significantly on the Iraq policy. A large majority (63%) of women say going into Iraq was a mistake but men split 48%-48% on the question.

“It's becoming clear that the Bush presidency will be defined and assessed in the long run by the country's involvement in Iraq,” said Woolley.

The PublicMind poll of 600 registered, likely voters statewide was conducted from July 12 to July 19 and has a margin of error of +/- 4 percentage points.

 

 


Poll Analysis

Contacts:

Bruce Larson 973.769.1401

Peter Woolley 973.670.3239

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Copyright © 2005, Fairleigh Dickinson University. All rights reserved. FDU PublicMind Poll [Latest update 050720]