Republican outlook dims

The latest AP/Ipsos poll shows Bush approval falling back to 33%, the same as his low point in May. This poll obviously doesn't reflect the Bush bounce from the foiled terrorist plot that the mainstream media are so ecstatic about, but most of the recent Bush bounces haven't lasted very long. The poll also holds bad news for Republicans in general:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Republicans determined to win in November are up against a troublesome trend - growing opposition to President Bush.

An Associated Press-Ipsos poll conducted this week found the president's approval rating has dropped to 33 percent, matching his low in May. His handling of nearly every issue, from the Iraq war to foreign policy, contributed to the president's decline around the nation, even in the Republican-friendly South.

More sobering for the GOP are the number of voters who backed Bush in 2004 who are ready to vote Democratic in the fall's congressional elections - 19 percent. These one-time Bush voters are more likely to be female, self-described moderates, low- to middle-income and from the Northeast and Midwest.

Two years after giving the Republican president another term, more than half of these voters - 57 percent - disapprove of the job Bush is doing.

"The signs now point to the most likely outcome of Democrats gaining control of the House," said Robert Erikson, a Columbia University political science professor.