|
April 21, 2008
George W. Bush's Overall Job Approval Holds Steady
George
W. Bush's overall job approval
is holding steady at 22% as 68% of Americans say the national economy is in a recession according
to the
latest survey
from the American Research
Group. Among all Americans, 22% approve of the way
Bush is
handling his job as president and 72% disapprove. When it comes
to Bush's handling of the economy, 22% approve and 73% disapprove.
Among
Americans registered to vote, 23% approve
of the way Bush is handling his job as president and 71% disapprove.
When it comes to the way Bush is handling the economy,
23% of registered voters approve of the way Bush is handling
the economy and 72% disapprove.
A total of 54% of Americans say their personal
financial situations are getting worse, up from 46% in March and up from 31% a year ago. The
results
presented here
are based on
1,100 completed telephone interviews conducted among a nationwide
random sample of adults 18
years and older. The interviews were completed April 16
through 19, 2008. The theoretical
margin of error for the total sample is plus or minus 2.6 percentage
points, 95% of the time,
on questions where opinion is evenly split.
Overall, 22% of Americans say that they
approve of the way George W.
Bush is handling his job as president, 72% disapprove, and
6% are undecided.
|
Bush job approval
|
Approve
|
Disapprove
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr
2008 |
22% |
72% |
6% |
| Mar 2008 |
24% |
75% |
1% |
| Feb
2008 |
19% |
77% |
4% |
| Jan 2008 |
34% |
59% |
7% |
| Dec
2007 |
32% |
66% |
2% |
| Nov 2007 |
31% |
64% |
5% |
| Oct
2007 |
25% |
67% |
8% |
| Sep 2007 |
34% |
60% |
6% |
| Aug
2007 |
28% |
65% |
7% |
| Jul 2007 |
25% |
71% |
4% |
| Jun 2007 |
27% |
67% |
6% |
| May 2007 |
31% |
64% |
5% |
| Apr
2007 |
33% |
62% |
5% |
Among Republicans (28% of adults registered to vote in the survey), 67%
approve of the way Bush is handling his job and 27% disapprove.
Among Democrats (44% of adults registered to vote in the survey),
1% approve
and 95% disapprove of the way
Bush is handling
his job. Among independents (28% of adults registered to vote
in the survey), 14%
approve and 78% disapprove of the way Bush is handling his
job as president.
Overall, 22% of Americans
say that they
approve
of the way George W. Bush is handling the economy, 73% disapprove,
and 5% are undecided.
Among registered voters, 23% approve and 72% disapprove
of
the way Bush is handling the economy.
|
Bush handling the economy
|
Approve
|
Disapprove
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr 2008 |
22% |
73% |
5% |
| Mar 2008 |
18% |
80% |
2% |
| Feb 2008 |
14% |
79% |
7% |
| Jan 2008 |
29% |
63% |
8% |
| Dec 2007 |
28% |
71% |
1% |
| Nov 2007 |
32% |
62% |
6% |
| Oct 2007 |
23% |
67% |
10% |
| Sep 2007 |
33% |
58% |
9% |
| Aug 2007 |
29% |
64% |
7% |
| Jul 2007 |
23% |
73% |
4% |
| Jun 2007 |
29% |
64% |
7% |
| May 2007 |
31% |
62% |
7% |
| Apr 2007 |
33% |
63% |
4% |
Among Republicans, 65% approve of the way Bush is handling the economy and
29% disapprove. Among
Democrats, 95% disapprove of the way Bush is handling the economy
and 1% approve.
Among independents, 15% approve and 78%
disapprove of the way Bush is handling the economy.
A
total of 8% of Americans say that the national economy is
getting
better, 14% say it is staying the same, and 77% say
the national economy is getting worse.
|
National economy |
Getting better |
Staying the same |
Getting worse |
Undecided |
|
| Apr 2008 |
8% |
14% |
77% |
1% |
| Mar 2008 |
4% |
9% |
86% |
1% |
| Feb 2008 |
1% |
20% |
78% |
1% |
| Jan 2008 |
8% |
22% |
64% |
6% |
| Dec 2007 |
7% |
28% |
64% |
1% |
| Nov 2007 |
18% |
26% |
55% |
1% |
| Oct 2007 |
8% |
18% |
69% |
5% |
| Sep 2007 |
14% |
20% |
63% |
3% |
| Aug 2007 |
8% |
29% |
59% |
4% |
| Jul 2007 |
12% |
28% |
58% |
2% |
| Jun 2007 |
16% |
28% |
55% |
1% |
| May 2007 |
19% |
24% |
53% |
4% |
| Apr 2007 |
23% |
17% |
59% |
1% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush
is handling his job, 38% say getting better, 21% say staying
the same, and 41% say getting worse. Of those saying
they
disapprove of the way Bush
is handling his job, none say getting better, 6% say staying
the same, and 91% say getting worse.
A total
of 31% of Americans say they believe
the national economy will be better a year from now, 27% say
it will be the same, 33% say
it will be worse, and 4% are undecided.
|
National economy a year from now |
Better than today
|
The same as today
|
Worse than today
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr 2008 |
31% |
27% |
33% |
9% |
| Mar 2008 |
48% |
19% |
29% |
4% |
| Feb 2008 |
42% |
30% |
27% |
1% |
| Jan 2008 |
32% |
35% |
21% |
12% |
| Dec 2007 |
28% |
28% |
43% |
1% |
| Nov 2007 |
24% |
29% |
39% |
8% |
| Oct 2007 |
18% |
27% |
53% |
2% |
| Sep 2007 |
32% |
26% |
38% |
4% |
| Aug 2007 |
32% |
20% |
42% |
6% |
| Jul 2007 |
22% |
31% |
42% |
5% |
| Jun 2007 |
22% |
33% |
42% |
3% |
| May 2007 |
16% |
29% |
48% |
7% |
| Apr 2007 |
26% |
29% |
41% |
4% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush is handling his job, 48% say better,
38%
say the same as today, and 14% say worse than today.
Among those saying they disapprove of the way Bush is handling
his job as president, 27% say better, 19% say the same, and
40%
say worse.
Overall, 68% of Americans say they believe
that the national economy
is in a recession, 18% say they
do
not believe the economy is in
a recession, and 14% are undecided.
| National economy in a recession
|
Yes
|
No
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr 2008 |
68% |
18% |
14% |
| Mar 2008 |
66% |
12% |
22% |
| Feb 2008 |
47% |
29% |
24% |
| Jan 2008 |
35% |
24% |
41% |
| Dec 2007 |
7% |
28% |
65% |
| Nov 2007 |
34% |
41% |
25% |
| Oct 2007 |
40% |
38% |
22% |
| Sep 2007 |
25% |
52% |
23% |
| Aug 2007 |
31% |
38% |
31% |
| Jul 2007 |
29% |
37% |
34% |
| Jun 2007 |
22% |
41% |
37% |
| May 2007 |
36% |
38% |
26% |
| Apr 2007 |
28% |
53% |
19% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush
is handling his job, 55% say the national economy is in a
recession, 38% say is it not in a recession, and 7% are undecided.
Of those saying they disapprove of the way Bush is handling
his job, 77% say the national economy
is in a recession, 10% say the national economy is not
in
a recession, and 13% are undecided.
A
total of 20% of Americans rate
the national economy as excellent, very good, or good and 79%
rate it as
bad, very bad, or terrible.
|
National economy |
Excellent
|
Very good
|
Good
|
Bad
|
Very bad
|
Terrible
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr 2008 |
1% |
3% |
16% |
20% |
13% |
46% |
1% |
| Mar 2008 |
1% |
4% |
16% |
10% |
26% |
42% |
1% |
| Feb 2008 |
1% |
7% |
17% |
44% |
10% |
20% |
1% |
| Jan 2008 |
2% |
14% |
27% |
21% |
17% |
18% |
1% |
| Dec 2007 |
7% |
16% |
12% |
31% |
16% |
17% |
1% |
| Nov 2007 |
16% |
11% |
21% |
25% |
12% |
14% |
1% |
| Oct 2007 |
8% |
10% |
20% |
29% |
14% |
18% |
1% |
| Sep 2007 |
13% |
14% |
21% |
27% |
7% |
17% |
1% |
| Aug 2007 |
9% |
19% |
21% |
22% |
16% |
12% |
1% |
| Jul 2007 |
9% |
11% |
23% |
28% |
12% |
16% |
1% |
| Jun 2007 |
16% |
11% |
20% |
31% |
9% |
12% |
1% |
| May 2007 |
12% |
15% |
16% |
25% |
16% |
15% |
1% |
| Apr 2007 |
17% |
12% |
29% |
30% |
8% |
3% |
1% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush
is handling his job, 59% say excellent, very good, or good
and 40% say bad, very bad, or terrible.
Among
those saying they
disapprove of the way Bush
is handling his job, 96% say bad, very bad, or terrible and
3% say excellent, very good, or good.
When
it comes to rating their household
financial situations, 57% of Americans give an excellent, very
good, or good rating and 42%
give a bad, very bad, or terrible rating.
|
Household financial situation |
Excellent
|
Very good
|
Good
|
Bad
|
Very bad
|
Terrible
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr 2008 |
8% |
12% |
37% |
18% |
11% |
13% |
1% |
| Mar 2008 |
9% |
22% |
33% |
17% |
16% |
2% |
1% |
| Feb 2008 |
6% |
17% |
36% |
22% |
11% |
7% |
1% |
| Jan 2008 |
12% |
13% |
45% |
15% |
6% |
8% |
1% |
| Dec 2007 |
14% |
16% |
36% |
12% |
17% |
4% |
1% |
| Nov 2007 |
13% |
14% |
38% |
27% |
6% |
1% |
1% |
| Oct 2007 |
11% |
22% |
32% |
27% |
2% |
5% |
1% |
| Sep 2007 |
12% |
17% |
44% |
18% |
3% |
5% |
1% |
| Aug 2007 |
11% |
19% |
25% |
33% |
9% |
2% |
1% |
| Jul 2007 |
5% |
24% |
39% |
15% |
9% |
7% |
1% |
| Jun 2007 |
8% |
19% |
41% |
22% |
6% |
3% |
1% |
| May 2007 |
15% |
9% |
38% |
19% |
12% |
6% |
1% |
| Apr 2007 |
11% |
16% |
51% |
17% |
3% |
1% |
1% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush
is handling his job, 73% say excellent, very good, or good
and 26% say bad or very bad.
Among those saying they disapprove
of the way Bush is handling his job, 50% say very
good,
or good and 49% say
bad, very bad, or terrible.
A total of 6%
of Americans say
they think the financial situations
in their households are getting better, 39% say staying the
same, and 54% say getting worse.
|
Household financial situation |
Getting better
|
Staying the same
|
Getting worse
|
Undecided
|
|
| Apr 2008 |
6% |
39% |
54% |
1% |
| Mar 2008 |
7% |
46% |
46% |
1% |
| Feb 2008 |
8% |
45% |
41% |
6% |
| Jan 2008 |
22% |
25% |
49% |
4% |
| Dec 2007 |
20% |
50% |
29% |
1% |
| Nov 2007 |
14% |
54% |
26% |
6% |
| Oct 2007 |
17% |
45% |
35% |
3% |
| Sep 2007 |
24% |
39% |
34% |
3% |
| Aug 2007 |
21% |
37% |
41% |
1% |
| Jul 2007 |
15% |
47% |
37% |
1% |
| Jun 2007 |
11% |
48% |
37% |
4% |
| May 2007 |
21% |
44% |
34% |
1% |
| Apr 2007 |
24% |
41% |
31% |
4% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush
is handling his job, 27% say getting better, 45% say staying
the same, and 27% say getting worse. Among those saying
they disapprove of the way Bush is handling his job, none say
getting better, 32% say
staying the same, and 65% say getting worse.
Looking
to a year from now, 19%
of Americans say that they think their household financial
situations will be better than today, 31% say the same as today,
and 37% say worse than today.
|
Household financial situation a year from now |
Better than today |
The same as today |
Worse than today |
Undecided |
|
| Apr 2008 |
19% |
31% |
37% |
13% |
| Mar 2008 |
31% |
41% |
25% |
3% |
| Feb 2008 |
17% |
52% |
25% |
6% |
| Jan 2008 |
28% |
41% |
24% |
7% |
| Dec 2007 |
36% |
37% |
25% |
2% |
| Nov 2007 |
29% |
43% |
19% |
9% |
| Oct 2007 |
26% |
48% |
23% |
3% |
| Sep 2007 |
48% |
29% |
18% |
5% |
| Aug 2007 |
32% |
33% |
24% |
11% |
| Jul 2007 |
34% |
39% |
22% |
5% |
| Jun 2007 |
29% |
39% |
23% |
9% |
| May 2007 |
29% |
33% |
33% |
5% |
| Apr 2007 |
30% |
33% |
36% |
1% |
Among those saying they approve of the way Bush
is handling his job, 41% say better than today, 31% say
the same as today, and 27% say worse than today. Among those
saying they disapprove of the
way
Bush is handling his job, 10% say better than today, 31%
say
the same as today, and 41% say worse than today.
About this Survey -
Survey Sponsor: American Research Group, Inc. The American Research Group has been conducting national surveys of consumers since 1985. Sample
Size: 1,100 completed telephone interviews among a random sample of all adults age 18 and older
living in telephone households in the continental United States. Sample
Dates: April 16-19, 2008 Margin of Error: ± 3 percentage points, 95% of the time, on questions where opinion is evenly split. Question Wording: How do you rate the condition of the national economy these days - would you say it is excellent, very good, good, bad, very bad, or terrible? Do you think the national economy is getting better, staying the same, or getting worse? Would you say that the national economy is in a recession, or not? A year from now, do you expect the national economy to be better than it is today, the same as it is today, or worse than it is today? How do you rate the condition of the financial
situation in your household - would you say it is excellent, very good, good, bad, very bad,
or terrible? Do you think the financial situation in your household is getting better, staying the same, or getting worse? A year from now, do you expect the financial situation in your household to be better than it is today, the same as it is today, or worse than it is today? Do you approve or disapprove of the way George
W. Bush is handling his job as president? Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling the economy? |
