Poll: Bush standing with public weakening

By WILL LESTER
Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush's standing with the public is slumping just three months into his final term, but Americans have an even lower regard for the job being done by Congress.

Bush's job approval is at 44 percent, with 54 percent disapproving. Only 37 percent have a favorable opinion of the work being done by the Republican-controlled Congress, according to an AP-Ipsos poll.

Bush's job approval was at 49 percent in January, while Congress was at 41 percent.

"This is a pretty sour spring," said Karlyn Bowman, a public opinion analyst at the conservative-leaning American Enterprise Institute. "People are not very impressed by what Bush is doing or by what Congress is doing - Democrats or Republicans."

Record high gasoline prices, nervousness about the future of Social Security, the ongoing Iraq war and the Terri Schiavo case are all contributing, political analysts said.

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