Bush approval rating hits new low of 31%

President George W. Bush's approval rating fell to 31 percent, declining 4 percentage points in the week where he saw his Republican Party lose control of the House and Senate in the midterm elections, according to a Newsweek magazine poll.

Sixty-three percent of the 1,006 adults surveyed Nov. 9-10 said they disapproved of the job Bush is doing as president. The poll's margin of error was plus or minus 4 percentage points.

Likewise, 63 percent said they were dissatisfied with the direction of the country, while 29 percent said they were satisfied. The last time 50 percent of Americans said they were satisfied was at the start of the Iraq war in 2003.

Even with the large Democratic gains, those polled expressed concern about what the changes to Congress may entail. Of those questioned, 43 percent said they were "very" concerned and 26 percent said they were "somewhat" concerned that Democrats may keep Bush from doing what is necessary to combat terrorism.

Following the election, the poll found that large percentages of those surveyed said they supported programs that had been mentioned as part of the Democratic legislative agenda, with 92 percent saying negotiating directly with drug companies for lower prices should be a priority. Of those surveyed, 89 percent said raising the minimum wage should be a priority, and 86 percent said there should be new laws to limit the influence of lobbyists, according to the poll.

With maneuvering prior to the 2008 presidential election already underway, the poll found that 33 percent of registered voters said there was a "good chance" they would vote for Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, 24 percent backed Republican Rudolph Giuliani, former New York mayor, and 24 percent supported U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, a Republican, while 20 percent said there was a good chance they'd vote for Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona.

Of those who said there was "no chance" they'd vote for a particular candidate, 45 percent were against Clinton, 43 percent were against Rice, and Giuliani and McCain were opposed by 32 percent each.