America continues to sour on Bush, Congress

I found this poll off of Americablog, so I had to go back to the source of the story. Yes, we're talking more low poll numbers for President Bush. This is off MSNBC News:

WASHINGTON - As gasoline prices have spiked above $3 a gallon throughout the country, the latest NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds that the public'’s view of President BushÂ’s job, the economy and the nation'’s direction have continued to decline. But with the midterm elections just six months away, the biggest drop in the survey--11 points in one month--is in the approval rating of Congress, which is locked in a bitter debate over what do about these gas prices, immigration, Iraq and a host of other issues.

"“You have never seen such a sour mood in the country," says Democratic pollster Peter D. Hart, who conducted this survey with Republican Bill McInturff. "“It is sour, sour, sour."

And in that sour mood, the poll shows, registered voters say they prefer Democrats controlling Congress--but by a smaller margin than in the past few NBC/Journal surveys.

According to the poll, BushÂ’s approval rating fell by one point from last month to 36 percent, his lowest mark in the survey. But the troubling news for Bush doesn'’t stop there: Hart explains that Bush has now spent nine consecutive months at 40 percent or below in the poll, a feat exceeded only by Richard Nixon (13 months) and Harry Truman (26 months).

McInturff adds that it will be difficult for the president to substantially improve his standing, barring an increase in stability in Iraq or some kind of '“extraordinary'” event taking place.

Yet Bush'’s approval isn'’t the only measure that has declined. In the poll--which was taken April 21-24 of 1,005 adults, and which has a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points--just 24 percent believe the nation is headed in the right direction, a drop of two points since last month and seven points since January. What'’s more, only 17 percent think the nation'’s economy will improve in the next 12 months, a decline of seven points since March.

The big question I have to ask here is, where is President Bush's base of support? Looking at all these polls--Gallup, ABC News /Washington Post, CBS News, Fox News, Zogby--they have all been consistently dropping with no end in sight. Bush has already spent nine consecutive months at 40 percent or below, and he's still dropping. So I have to wonder what hard-lined, neoconservative, Religious Right, wing-nut would be left in this country to continue to support Bush as the economy deteriorates, gas prices skyrocket, Iraq continues to be a meat grinder for young American men and treasure, the housing market collapses, interest rates rise, and our national debt eats everything in sight. And if the Democrats get control of Congress, how much further will Bush's poll numbers drop once the congressional investigations start looking into the scndals and skeletons in the Bush White House closet?

It is an interesting thought.