The criminals must be held to account.

New York Times — 17 January 2009 — by Megan Thee-Brenan — Disapproval of Bush is the greatest of any president ever recorded, including Nixon. “Record numbers have an unfavorable opinion of him personally. Six in 10 of those surveyed said they viewed him negatively, while about one-quarter viewed him favorably.”

— PRESIDENT BUSH PREPARES TO LEAVE OFFICE WITH NO EVIDENCE THAT PUBLIC OPINION TOWARDS HIM IS SOFTENING DURING HIS FINAL DAYS IN POWER, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll.

When asked about Mr. Bush’s performance over the last eight years, 22 percent of respondents said they approved. That matched Mr. Bush’s job-approval rating for much of last fall, the lowest of his presidency. In the current poll, 73 percent disapproved of his performance over the course of his two terms.

Disapproval cut across party lines, with Democrats, independents and even 34 percent of Republicans critical of Mr. Bush’s performance. [In late December, a CNN/Opinion Research Poll disclosed that 75 percent of Americans were glad President Bush was leaving office, while 23 percent said they would miss him.]

In contrast, Mr. Bush’s most recent predecessors left office with approval ratings ranging from 68 percent, for both Ronald Reagan and Bill Clinton, to 44 percent, for Jimmy Carter. Mr. Bush’s father left with 54 percent.

When asked to assess Mr. Bush’s presidency more precisely, just 17 percent of those surveyed rated it very good or good, while 83 percent said it had been average or poor. Fifty-nine percent of Americans regarded Mr. Clinton’s presidency as very good or good when he left office, and 40 percent viewed the presidency of the elder Mr. Bush the same way.

The public’s assessment of the president’s handling of both the economy and the war in Iraq was markedly negative. Seventy-seven percent disapproved of Mr. Bush’s management of the economy, and 71 percent faulted his handling of the war.
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In surveys that began with Gallup polling in the administration of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Mr. Bush has the distinction of being the president with both the highest and lowest approval ratings. The highest, 90 percent, was recorded shortly after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

The campaign against terrorism is one area in which he continues to win a measure of support from the public, with 47 percent approving of his handling of the issue and 48 percent disapproving. Republicans were particularly supportive of him on the subject of terrorism: 87 percent approved of his administration’s actions to fight it.

Still, not only do Americans disapprove of the overall job Mr. Bush has done, but record numbers also have an unfavorable opinion of him personally. Six in 10 of those surveyed said they viewed him negatively, while about one-quarter viewed him favorably.

Americans’ historically negative assessment of the administration is not limited to the president. Vice President Dick Cheney’s favorability rating in the new poll is 13 percent, the lowest of his time in office.

The nationwide telephone poll was conducted from Sunday through Thursday with 1,112 adults, and had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points. Complete results and methodology are at nytimes.com/polls.
Copyright © 17 January 2009 The New York Times Company