Bush's political woes stretch beyond Katrina

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/N22432742.htm

WASHINGTON, Sept 22 (Reuters) - President George W. Bush's mounting political woes extend far beyond Hurricane Katrina's fallout, with high gas prices, low public confidence and growing opposition to the Iraq war rivaling the storm controversy as long-term threats.

Bush's approval rating, battered in the last few weeks by criticism over a slow and ineffectual early response to the storm, was slumping well before the hurricane ravaged the U.S. Gulf Coast, pollsters said.

"It's a mistake to assume that somehow this is a short-term problem caused by Katrina. This is just a continuation of the track he's been on since January," said Frank Newport, editor in chief of the Gallup poll.

Bush's slide in the polls has been driven by deepening doubts about the Iraq war and pessimism about the economy, the two issues consistently chosen by voters as the most important to them, he said.

[hardrainfallin]

1. can't wait to see what happens once the NE story

starts circulating widely.

[mattclearing]

2. NE? edit, oh, National Enquirer. Got it.

Well, if it gets re-published by someone reputable, it would be a big deal.