Bush approval ratings, as of 5/16/05 (vs. January 2005):
Approve 43 (down from 50 in March)
Disapprove 50 (up from 43 in January)
Source: Pew Research Center
Disengaged Public Leans Against Changing Filibuster Rules: Approval of Bush, GOP Leaders Slips
If only he'd had those approval ratings before the election.
Pal Joey, don't get my hopes up, I was so excited thinking the Bushwacker was caught in some kind of kinky sex scandal.
People are fickle,after just re-electing him now they've decided to be upset and open their eyes when the damage is done
BluCat, that's because Karl Rove is a mastermind at making the average, "morals-driven" voter think the Republicans have his interest in mind.
lol so was stalin
Joined: 12/31/69
Joey another lie from the "Liberal Opinion Research Pollers" no doubt. Or maybe you just don't support our troops? I think you'll be singing a different tune after our allies in Saudi Arabia get done questioning you, Comrade!
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
Actually, I'm pretty sure he had some of the lowest approval ratings ever for a re-elected President.
As long as they don't flush down the toilet my copy of the libretto to Follies, signed by Sondheim himself!
unfortunately, he can still do damage, even in his lame-duck, poor approval position... just gotta have the Supreme Court continue to take their vitamins...
and their happy pills
So true! Here's hoping the Dems start filibustering like CRAZY! The minute Scalie because Chief Justice is the minute I start filing my naturalization papers with Canada.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
It might be a matter of vitamins for Rehnquist (who's being more stubborn about staying on than I thought he'd be), but I think the other conservative judges, and maybe even Kennedy, wanted to have the possibility of stepping down before Bush's term was up so they get replaced with conservatives. Why do you think they rigged Bush v. Gore?
However, the way Republicans have been hacking away at the judicial branch could have the justices feeling a bit less friendly towards their so-called ideological friends. They might well decide to be like Rehnquist and stay on until the bitter end. Thurgood Marshall comes to mind.
Oh, and I think Bush would prefer to appoint his own Chief Justice rather than promoting from within, but Justice Scalia does remain a good possibility. O'Connor's positions on abortion put her out of contention, and Thomas is a no-no because...well, he's friggin' Clarence Thomas.
Updated On: 5/17/05 at 03:46 PM
Broadway Star Joined: 4/3/04
Plum--You're right. His approval rating at this point is lower than Nixon's was at this point of his second term (which, by the way, was when he was encased in the Watergate scandal).
Joined: 12/31/69
Chief Justice Scalia is one of the most frightening things I can imagine.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
Just remember that the main difference between Justice Scalia and Chief Justice Scalia is that the latter gets to decide who writes the opinion of the side he's on. It's important, yes, but the title of "Chief" doesn't mean he actually rules over any of the other justices in any way.
Joined: 12/31/69
Plum - in theory, of course - but I do think they 'set the tone'.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
Mm-hmm. Though I think it's at least partly because they reflect the political atmospheres of their times.
I'm really hoping Bush goes for an outsider and the choice bites him in the ass. Earl Warren was appointed by Eisenhower, after all. Even Kennedy was appointed by Reagan, as was the not-quite-tough-enough-on-abortion O'Connor.
But remember, Plum. The current goal of the Republican party is to reduce the independence of the supposedly maverick and reckless "ultra-liberal" Supreme Court.
In the words of conservative legal expert Mark Levin, in his bestselling Men in Black, which has become a bible of talking points for every Republican facing mid-term elections:
"From same-sex marriage, illegal immigration, and economic socialism to partial-birth abortion, political speech, and terrorists' 'rights,' judges have abused their constitutional mandate by imposing their personal prejudices and beliefs on the rest of society. And we, the people, need not stand for it."
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
We've had this discussion before, I think. :) And I'm feeling too lazy to reiterate all my (amateur) thoughts on the Court, but suffice to say that things aren't as bad as you would have them seem, PJ.
And sometimes I really wish you'd make up your mind. Is Bush an all-powerful force of satanic evil who's going to destroy the media, the judicial system, and everything else that stands up to him, or is he just a lame duck with low approval ratings?
Very simple: He's a force of satanic evil with low approval ratings, who's trying to destroy the media, the judicial system, and everything else that stands up to him before his term runs out so that the Republican Party will control the executive, legislative and judicial branches of the government as well as the media from this point forevermore.
Broadway Legend Joined: 3/4/04
heh, everytime i want to remember how powerful my forces of evil are, i just have to read a pj post and my thirst for power is somewhat sated. shine up that triangle.
Broadway Legend Joined: 4/16/05
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