The Gallup Poll has found that presidential approval tends to rise during that phase of presidential life known as lame-duck.
by Mark Silva
The lame-duck President Bush has pretty much nowhere to go but up from here, in his public approval ratings, that is.
And that's pretty much where lame-duck presidents have gone during the time between the elections of their successors and their departures from office - up.
Bush's bleak job approval at the moment - 28 percent in the latest daily Gallup Poll - is not as bad as his 24-point low. And if history is any guide, George W. Bush may well be buffing up those numbers before he departs for Texas. Or, like LBJ, he may be wearing the albatross of a war, and now a tanking economy as well, that holds those outgoing numbers in check.
"It is common for presidents who are about to leave the White House to receive a bump in their job approval ratings between Election Day and Inauguration Day,'' Gallup's Jeffrey Jones writes. "Of the eight post-World War II presidents who left office after serving two terms, declining to seek an additional term, or being defeated for re-election, six saw increased job approval ratings in their final two-plus months in office.
"The last three presidents, and four of the last five who departed at the end of a term, saw significant rises in their ratings. Some of these increases were evident beginning with the first poll conducted after the election.''
Bush's own father saw "the largest spike'' in approval during lame-duck season. Only 34 percent of Americans surveyed approved of the job that the 41st president was doing in October 1992, just before Bill Clinton defeated him. Immediately after that vote, Bush's approval jumped to 43 percent in the Gallup Poll and kept going to 56 before he was finished - "a remarkable increase of 22 percentage points.''
Ronald Reagan was running at 51 percent approval before the 1988 election for his successor, his vice president, Bush. And Reagan climbed to 63 percent at the end - a fine departure.
Bill Clinton gained nine points as a lame duck, Gerald Ford eight, and even Lyndon Johnson, besieged by the war in Vietnam and forfeiting a chance to seek reelection, gained seven points on the way out.
Comments
Another George's stock has been going up too.
George Ryan.
Unfortunately, that all-important George, the one on the dollar, he seems to be going down down down.
Posted by: ornery | December 5, 2008 8:29 PM
Today the idiot finally said we are in a recession. That MUST mean we are in a Depression! This idiot does not have a clue. He just sits there and does nothing. He doesn't encourage anyone or ask for stimulus. Should not he be on the forefront and provide leadership?
He will be welcomed out the door by the American people. Rightfully so! Only to be praised by the rich, fools and the sheep that thought he provided refuge, even though he disregarded intelligence reports regarding the "flying into buildings by al queda murderers". His legacy will be that of a fool and a liar, and he willed be remembered forever! He fiddled while Rome burned
Posted by: Jim | December 5, 2008 9:01 PM
Sure, now that he's stopped digging us into a hole, and in fact has stopped doing ANYTHING as Rome burns around him, people like him better. Cmon Jan 20....
Posted by: Kenny Bunkport ✌ | December 5, 2008 9:19 PM
Here we have a guy (Bush) who as President during the last eight years war-mongered, politisized the DOJ against Dems, installed Trickledown tax cuts for the rich Reaganomics, deregulated wall street favoring the white collar criminals who are now asking for bailouts, demonized minorities and gays, outed a CIA agent for political reasons, tortured in our name, lied us into a war in Iraq etc etc.....and he was cheered all along the way by the very same Republicans who now act like they never voted or campaigned for him ever.
To be a Republican today is to constantly deny reality...
Posted by: John E | December 5, 2008 9:49 PM
Oh yeah, that's right on. We're feeling much better about the Bush regime now that unemployment is up to 533 something thousand people last month, our homes aren't worth a lump of dog poop, & our kids are camping out in Iraq. Those approval numbers must be jumping now that we've had a chance to think we might miss Bush. Lol like we would miss a skunk. Gallup you guys be on crack!
Posted by: milly | December 5, 2008 10:08 PM
There is nothing I care less about, that is less important, than any president's approval ratings. I mean ANY president. History is the final judge, and policy, achievements and failures are the only criteria -- not any snapshot of the public's mood.
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One can easily posit an argument as to why Bush has been a poor president, and approval ratings won't (because they shouldn't) enter into the equation.
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BTW, deep fried Twinkies have high approval ratings. Does that mean they're good for us?
Posted by: MJ | December 5, 2008 10:48 PM
From the Daily Show 12-4-08
:-)
ABC News' Charles Gibson:
"You're only 62. Is there one more thing you really want to achieve"?
George W. Bush:
"Um, that's interesting question... Wouldn't it be interesting for baby boomers not to retire in, y'know, nice places, but to retire during their retirement to go, y'know, help people deal with malaria or AIDS? ... In other words, I'm not suggesting that is what I'm gonna do. It is the kind of thing that intrigues me."
Jon Stewart:
"That's like walking up to a homeless guy and going, "Hey, imagine if I just gave you thousands of dollars...I bet that would totally change your life! Intriguing to think about, isn’t it? Alright, See ya later!"
:-)
Posted by: ace mcfunkenstein | December 6, 2008 12:23 AM
"Bush's lame-duck approval: Rising?"
Who cares? Seriously.
Posted by: JDK | December 6, 2008 2:58 AM
I know that I'm gonna like him a whole lot better when he's gone.
Posted by: Quippy | December 6, 2008 8:47 AM
:-)
Posted by: ace mcfunkenstein | December 6, 2008 12:23 AM
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Thank you John E. Now we know John Stewart's opinion about Bush's comment about retirement. However it doesn't speak to the original post. Anyway don't YOU ever have an opinion -- an idea that you've actually hatched on your own? That's what this blog is supposed to be for, and it's sad to miss the opportunity of using this free soapbox. Even tho the monitoring (read: censorship) is often slow, and seems unreasonable, you can express your own ideas if you've a mind to.
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Or would you rather just copy and paste late night comics' patter?
Posted by: MJ | December 6, 2008 10:40 AM
What a joke.
28%. You guys have to be kidding us. This clown will go down in history as the worst president EVER.
Posted by: JKS | December 6, 2008 11:10 AM
Posted by: Jim: "Should not he be on the forefront and provide leadership?"
He wasn't leading before...why would he start now?
I'm just thankful I'm going through these hard times in a country as great as America. We have beaten the bad times before and I have every reason to believe we will do it again.
Posted by: lochnessmonster | December 6, 2008 11:36 AM
"Now there is a new biography of President Bush out, have you heard this? Where it says the president cries a lot. The president said, 'I do tears.' So lets see, he's impulsive, he's stubborn, he's weepy. Sorry Hillary, apparently we already have our first female president."
--Bill Maher---
Yesterday in Australia, a TV comedian dressed himself up over there as Osama Bin Laden and got within feet of Bush's hotel. They got him, and the Bush spokesman said it was obviously not the real Bin Laden because they caught him."
--Bill Maher---
Posted by: ace mcfunkenstein | December 6, 2008 4:59 PM
Harry S Truman had an approval rating of 23% yet most historians today rank him in the top ten Presidents. Bush's low was 24% but Congress was below that for most of 2008. Most likely 2009 won't be any better for Congress. Has Congress passed any spending bills for FY 2009 which started Oct. 1, 2008?
Posted by: JGsez | December 6, 2008 7:18 PM
Yes, bush will be remembered for MANY generations to come......as the president to add 7 Trillion to the national debt (Who really knows what this final number will be....we still have a month to go!) and our great-great-grandkids will curse his name. His picture will show up on our currency exchanged wildly around the world....our T-bills.
Posted by: Excellentform | December 7, 2008 8:55 AM
The President of the US can not spend a single penny. Deficits are purely the responsibility of the Congress. US citizens don't pay enough attention to Congress. Bush sent his proposed 2009 budget to Congress Feb. 4, 2008. People should be irate over the failure of Congress to do what is their number one job. And both houses are controlled by a single party. That is about the same level of performance as the CEO of GM - or worse.
Posted by: JGsez | December 8, 2008 10:39 AM
Amazingly enough President Bush did most likely the best job as president there could ever have been done...
Few People Realize the true Job of the President is not to Lead but to draw attention away from the leaders.
To paraphrase Douglas Adams who hit the nail on the head...
"The job of the president is not to wield power but to draw attention away from power by causing finely tuned moments of outrage...."
By that standard Bush beat Clinton out 10 to 1, we never knew if like Zaphod Beeblebox if he was Pretending to be stupid to hide how clever he was or if he was cleverly hiding his stupidity or if he was just plain stupid. But seeing how he can obviously duck a flying shoe I am inclined to believe the first is the real reason.
His antics while Disastous made him the focus of every ones anger when honestly he never honestly had control of anything, Remember he could not even go to war with out congress approval (something everyone forgets) and he dont control the budget he can only send his recommendations to congress and senate who really control it.
And the biggest laugh is the war could have been put to a dead stop if congress had voted flat out to defund it. Which none of them did. Yet Bush will take the whole blame for it. Something to stop and consider. He HAD no real power but takes all the blame.
He was a better Dancing chicken then Clinton and his Sex scandel could have ever been...
Sad thing is the next President will not be able to Top the previous two no matter how hard he tries, People will see Congress wielding their power during this presidency due to being fully emboldened and will realize that the poor president is just a figurehead,,,
What is the worse thing Obama can do lets see Light a Winston or a Salem or a Kool while in the oval office. Heck no one in the white house will honestly say anything if he does.
But looking back Bush Did more then any other president he pissed off everyone enough to get a dang near super majority in congress of one party or the other, something that is rare as is.
I give about 1 1/2 years or less before congress starts railroading things over the presidents veto. showing everyone how powerless that office really is.
Just remember Bush took the blame but did not do a dang thing.
Obama seems smart enough not to take it but spotlight those who are doing it when he gets railroaded the first time.
Posted by: Khelben Vasq | December 19, 2008 6:56 PM