Usually, when we look at poll numbers relating to the Bush White House, we look at approval ratings, which have been on the decline for months. At this point, however, with those numbers apparently leveling off a bit, let’s go beyond whether Americans believe the president is doing a good job and consider whether they think Bush is honest.
For the first time [in a Gallup poll], a majority of Americans, 51%, say the Bush administration deliberately misled the public about whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction — the central justification given for invading. The administration’s credibility on the issue has been steadily eroding since 2003 after stores of the weapons weren’t found.
Think about that for a second. Gallup polls, when compared to competing outlets, have shown Bush with consistently stronger support for most of his presidency. But in the latest survey, Gallup shows a majority of the public believes the president deliberately lied about sending the country into war. That’s stunning. It’s also long overdue.
As for our friend Karl Rove, the public isn’t exactly fond of him, either. A USA Today/CNN/Gallup poll showed a combined 62% of Americans believe Rove’s role in the Plame scandal was either criminal or unethical (only 15% said Rove didn’t do anything seriously wrong). Moreover, a plurality (40%) said Bush should fire Rove, and an even stronger plurality (49%) believes Rove should resign.
In the half-full, half-empty category, the poll showed that a combined 51% of the public is following the Plame scandal either somewhat closely or very closely. USA Today’s Susan Page suggests this means the controversy “hasn’t gripped the public’s attention.”
I’m not so sure. We’re in the middle of July, a lot of families are on vacation, students are away from classes, and half the nation is engaged in a White House scandal that has nothing to do with sex. I’d prefer to see that number higher, but considering the circumstances, 51% isn’t too shabby.