Seven in Ten Voters Side With Democrats; They Want OUT of Iraq!
WASHINGTON (AFP) - Opposition to Iraq War in the United States has hit a record high while President George W. Bush’s approval ratings (now consistently below 30%) have plunged to new low, according to a poll released on Tuesday.
The results from the USA Today/Gallup poll came as US lawmakers renewed debate on war policy in Iraq with Bush facing unprecedented pressure from within his own Republican party to change course.
The poll showed that seven in 10 Americans favor removing nearly all US troops from Iraq by April. Sixty-two percent of those surveyed said the United States had made a mistake in deploying troops to Iraq — the first time that figure exceeded 60 percent, the paper said. Click here to read more from the Associated Press.
Meanwhile with domestic political pressure building from both Republicans and Democrats, W (worst ever) maintains that he knows best and that he will refuse to review Iraq policy until next fall. The New York Times reports that with his Iraq policy under intensified criticism and debate, President Bush reiterated his “stay the course” message today.
As Mr. Bush was speaking, Congress was beginning an intensive two-week debate on the war. A growing number of lawmakers, including several prominent Republicans as well as Democratic opponents of the war, are now voicing skepticism and pessimism. They seem sure to use a Senate debate on a military-spending bill this week as an occasion for a renewed barrage against the administration’s policy. Some critics will try to attach troop-withdrawal timetables to the bill. Click here to read more from the New York Times.