Americans disapprove of Bush and Congress, poll says

As President Bush prepares for next week's State of the Union address, he faces widespread discontent over his job performance and the nation's direction that could threaten his party in the 2006 election, a Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg Poll has found.

 In the survey, 43 percent of Americans said they approved of Bush's performance as president -- his weakest showing in a Times poll. 



 He received even lower marks for his handling of the economy, health care and Iraq -- especially from women, whom the poll found have turned against him on several fronts. And by a 2-to-1 margin, those surveyed said the nation needs to change direction from the overall course Bush has set. 



 But the poll also found that most Americans believe Bush's policies have made the nation more secure. And a plurality say they trust him more than Democrats to protect the country against terrorism -- advantages that could help Republicans defend their House and Senate majorities in November. 



 Reflecting similar instincts, the poll found a majority of Americans still willing to take tough steps to reduce the risk of terrorism -- from surrendering some of their civil liberties to supporting military action against Iran if it continues to advance toward developing nuclear weapons. 



 These contrasting findings frame what could be the central dynamic in this year's elections: whether broad, though slightly eroded, public confidence in Bush's handling of terrorism will outweigh persistent dissatisfaction over his performance on domestic concerns and the war in Iraq. 



 The Times/Bloomberg Poll, supervised by Times polling director Susan Pinkus, surveyed 1,555 adults from Saturday through Wednesday; it has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points. 



 The poll findings pose another key political question: Can Democrats significantly benefit from discontent over Bush and the congressional GOP majority while suffering their own image problems? 



 Just 36 percent expressed a favorable opinion of congressional Democrats, while 45 percent viewed them unfavorably. That's statistically identical to the showing for congressional Republicans, who were viewed favorably by 38 percent and unfavorably by 44 percent.