[Polls]

Pew's New Numbers

The numbers out from Pew yesterday are in the vein of all the numbers out lately about Bush & Co., so I will not bore you with the repetitious details. One item did catch my eye, though. The divide in the electorate continues to gape, suggesting that GOP politicians in blue states may be looking at trouble. Among independents, presidential approval has plummeted from 47% at the beginning of the year to 29% today. For Dems, approval is at 12%, worse than Watergate-era Nixon numbers.


And this is also bizarre. Of several news stories offered by pollsters, "oil company profits" was the third most-watched story. Not Libby, not Alito (definitely not Alito), not the economy. Iraq was only slightly more watched. You think this isn't a good time for Dems to start playing the economic populist card? Hammering Bushco's buddies (which means most of the Texas-dominated GOP) in Big Oil wouldn't be such a bad idea.

(Moderates seem to be getting the message.)