Leaders

Summary of Findings Americans are critical of President Bush’s job performance in many policy areas, but negative opinions of his handling of the economy and Iraq are doing the most damage to his overall approval rating, which now stands at 43%. Just 35% approve of the president’s handling of the economy, down from 43% in […]

Though presidents have always worked hard to get their message out, the Bush administration has pushed the envelope, especially with its aggressive use of the faux news segments called video news releases.

Summary of Findings President George W. Bush is losing ground with the public in his efforts to build support for private retirement accounts in Social Security. Despite Bush’s intensive campaign to promote the idea, the percentage of Americans who say they favor private accounts has tumbled to 46% in Pew’s latest nationwide survey, down from […]

Summary of Findings The public is more optimistic over the situation in Iraq as a result of that nation’s recent elections, but remains skeptical of the Bush administration’s decision to go to war. Moreover, the elections have not improved opinions of President Bush’s handling of Iraq. The survey, largely completed before the president’s European trip, […]

Attitudes towards the war in Iraq are more negative among Latinos than in the general population, according to a survey conducted as President George W. Bush began his second term.

Summary of Findings George W. Bush begins his second term with considerably less popular support than other recent incumbent presidents after their reelection. He also is proposing a second-term policy agenda that differs in several key respects from the public’s. Health care, aid for the poor, and the growing budget deficit are all increasingly important […]

Summary of Findings Six weeks after President Bush’s victory, the divisions that were so apparent in the election show no signs of narrowing. The public remains split over the president’s job performance, the situation in Iraq, and the state of the national economy. But Bush voters are upbeat on all three questions ­ 92% approve […]

Bush's Gains Broad-Based

Key West, Florida Speaker: Michael Gerson, Speech Writer and Policy Adviser to President Bush Respondent: Carl Cannon, White House Correspondent, National Journal Moderator: Michael Cromartie, Vice President, Ethics and Public Policy Center In December 2004, 24 of the nation’s leading journalists gathered in Key West, Florida, for a private briefing on religion and politics, sponsored […]

Summary of Findings President George W. Bush holds a slight edge over Senator John Kerry in the final days of Campaign 2004. The Pew Research Center’s final pre-election poll of 1,925 likely voters, conducted Oct. 27-30, finds Bush with a three-point edge (48% to 45% for Kerry); Ralph Nader draws 1%, and 6% are undecided. […]