President Bush’s approval ratings are dropping steadily, according to the latest Gallup poll.

Bush’s overall approval rating has dropped 10 percent, to 42, since the last poll at the end of 2004. There was a decline in the ratings in every group polled, from Democrats to Republicans.

The approval from independents is down 14 percent to 28.

“What’s most telling is the independents that are declining in their support, and [they] are at least a third of the voters,” said Barbara Burrell, associate professor of political science. “They’re looking at the job he’s doing, so if he’s not getting any support from them, that’s pretty damaging.”

The low Democratic approval ratings may be from the high number of Americans dying in Iraq, the poor federal response to Hurricane Katrina and/or the fact that some top people in Bush’s party are being indicted, Burrell said.

Conservative support strong

Bush’s conservative Republican base is strong at 87 percent approval, the highest among all groups polled.

Many social conservatives who are against gay marriage and abortion voted for and still support him, Burrell said.

The decline in approval ratings over time is not entirely atypical for a president.

“The president’s approval rating starts off really high but it ends up declining,” said Matt Streb, assistant professor of political science. “What the president is facing right now is not that uncommon.”

The president has had a rough couple of weeks and public opinion reflects that, Streb said, referring to the Harriet Miers situation and the indictment of former vice presidential chief of staff Lewis Libby.

The decline in approval ratings is affecting the president’s ability to govern, as he has less bargaining power when he’s less popular, Streb said.

Polls unreliable?

State Representative Robert Pritchard (R-Hinckley) said his support for the president depends on the issue at hand.

“I think the president has had to deal with a number of major issues simultaneously, but he’s been open and consistent with what he’s tried to do,” Pritchard said. “It’s not always as black and white as we see on the evening news or read in the papers.”

The danger of opinion polls is that citizens don’t always know the issues before they decide to support or reject the president, he said.

Pritchard said the Iraq War may not be going the way he would like it to, but it’s the responsibility of the United States as a world leader to encourage democratic countries around the world.

In response to criticism on the president’s response to the hurricanes, Pritchard said no governmental unit was timely in its response and that a calamity of such great proportions was impossible to predict.

Despite all the criticism, public memory is fleeting and forgiving.

“People will forget about the Valerie Plame scandal, forget his response to Katrina, but what’s going on in Iraq – that’s the number one thing people are going to be rating him on,” Streb said. “Something dramatic needs to happen in Iraq.”