July
19, 2002 11:35 a.m. Bush’s
Polls: Who To Believe?
A
particularly gloomy report seems unfounded.
mericans worry that President Bush and his administration are too heavily
influenced by big business," reported the New York Times Thursday
in a front-page story announcing the results of its latest poll. The Times
also found that Americans "fear that Mr. Bush is hiding something
about his own corporate past and judge the economy to be in its worst
shape since 1994." The paper concluded that today's corporate scandals
"hold considerable peril for the White House and Mr. Bush's party
in this congressional election year."
All in all, it appeared
to be discouraging news for the president. But this morning, the Washington
Post reported the results of its own poll, and the findings are strikingly
different. The Post says a substantial majority, 58 percent, approve
of the way the president is handling the economy (versus 38 percent who
disapprove). The Post also found that 50 percent of those surveyed
approve of the way Bush is handling the issue of "regulating Wall
Street and the stock market" (versus 36 percent who disapprove).
And 49 percent approve of the president's handling of "the issue
of financial fraud and accounting irregularities by large business corporations"
(versus 43 percent who disapprove).
In addition, the
Post pollsters asked the following question: "Who do you trust
more to handle the issue of financial fraud and accounting irregularities
by large business corporations — Bush or the Democrats in Congress?"
Forty-two percent of those polled say Bush, while 44 percent say Democrats
in Congress — a virtual tie, and hardly the lopsided situation that
the Times suggested. Then the Post asked, "Who do you
trust more to protect your retirement savings — Bush or the Democrats
in Congress?" Forty-four percent say Bush, while 35 percent say Democrats
in Congress. Finally, the Post asked, "Overall, who do you
trust to do a better job coping with the main problems the nation faces
over the next few years — George W. Bush or the Democrats in Congress?"
Fifty-three percent say Bush, while 37 percent say Democrats.
Both the Times
and the Post asked this question: "Do you think the nation's
economy is getting better, getting worse, or staying the same?" The
Times found that 41 percent say it is getting worse, while 14 percent
say it is getting better and 44 percent say it is staying the same. The
Post found that 36 percent say it is getting worse, while 20 percent
say it is getting better and 43 percent say it is staying the same. But
the Post also asked, "Compared to two years ago, is your family's
financial situation better today, worse or about the same?" Twenty-seven
percent say better, and 47 percent say about the same — meaning that
74 percent say their personal finances are staying the same or getting
better, versus 27 percent who say their finances are getting worse.
The polls do agree
on one important question: The Post found the president's job-approval
rating to be 72 percent, while the Times placed it at 70 percent.
Still, the two papers' surveys seem to be the product of alternate universes
in opinion polling. And there is, unfortunately, no way to fully compare
the two. While the Post's editors have posted the entire results
on their website (you
can read them here), the Times's editors have chosen not to
release their full results. When it comes to the Times's conclusion
that the poll shows "considerable peril" for the White House,
you'll just have to trust them.
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mericans worry that President Bush and his administration are too heavily
influenced by big business," reported the New York Times Thursday
in a front-page story announcing the results of its latest poll. The Times
also found that Americans "fear that Mr. Bush is hiding something
about his own corporate past and judge the economy to be in its worst
shape since 1994." The paper concluded that today's corporate scandals
"hold considerable peril for the White House and Mr. Bush's party
in this congressional election year."
