Mr. Popularity

I've occasionally passed on the results of polls on GWB's job approval, as approval figures fell from the 90s, to the 70s, to the 50s, then to the 30s, and even into the high 20s. After a while, though, it began to seem too easy — fish-in-a-barrel stuff — so I laid off.

Today, though, American Research Group released a new nationwide poll of 1,100 American adults. Here's the highlight:

Among all Americans, 19% approve of the way Bush is handling his job as president and 77% disapprove.

To put that in perspective, Richard Nixon on the eve of his impeachment was in the mid-20s, with disapproval only in the 60s. (Nixon's lowest approval rating in any poll was 24%, though other polls put his nadir at 27.5%.) Carter dipped as low as the high 20s. I've never seen a reputable nationwide poll putting a sitting president below 20%.

Mind you, presidential approval numbers below about 35% are very difficult to achieve. (Ditto for individual members of Congress — while "Congress" rates appallingly low, most people give their own Representative and Senators high marks.) To get below 25%, you really need to be seen kicking nuns in the shins. To get below 20%, you need to be caught on camera raping puppies.

We're not likely to see such a low approval rating again in our lives.

The whole poll result is at http://americanresearchgroup.com/economy/.