WASHINGTON - Since President Bush's approval rating sank to the lowest level of his presidency in May, nearly six in 10 of his appearances helping Republican candidates have been closed to all media coverage.
Unlike his barnstorming leading up to the 2002 congressional elections, when he was more popular and the divisive
Iraq war had not begun,
Bush has yet to hold a single traditional campaign-style rally for one of his party's hopefuls this election cycle.Every one of his events for GOP gubernatorial, House and Senate candidates has been to raise money from faithful Republican donors — not to urge support among the broader voting public.
The GOP's control of Congress is in danger. The tendency of many Republican candidates to keep their president under wraps is represented starkly in Bush's schedule in the week ahead.
...
In 2002, between July and the end of September, nearly all of Bush's political appearances — most fundraisers — were open. From the end of August to this time in 2002, Bush also appeared in a half-dozen areas with tough races at "welcome" events, thinly veiled attempts to marshal presidential power to boost the struggling Republican candidates smiling at his side.
But this year, in the same time period between July and the end of September, nearly two-thirds of Bush's political events are scheduled to be closed, held in private homes where the White House says media coverage would damage the intimacy and intrude on hosts' privacy.
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http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060923/ap_on_el_ge/bush_contained
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