Iraq pushes Bush support to all time low
· Sectarian carnage ends hopes for early troop exit
· President's ratings same as Nixon's second term
Julian Borger in Washington and Michael Howard in Irbil
Wednesday March 1, 2006
The Guardian
Profound pessimism about the Iraq war has pushed George Bush's popularity to an all-time low of 34%, as polls yesterday showed American civilians and soldiers at odds with the White House over US objectives and strategy.
<snip>
Despite the fighting
, Mr Bush said last night he did not think there would be a civil war. In an interview with ABC News, before heading off for his tour of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, he said he had telephoned Iraqi Shia, Sunni and Kurdish leaders to urge calm after last week's mosque bombing. "And I heard loud and clear that they understand that they're going to choose unification, and we're going to help them do so," Mr Bush said. He added: "The US troops will stay there ... until the Iraqis can defend themselves. I mean, my policy has not changed."
Asked what Washington would do if civil war broke out in Iraq, Mr Bush said: "I don't buy your premise that there's going to be a civil war."
Public opinion is sceptical that this is the right policy. A poll published by CBS News yesterday, found only 36% of Americans said the war is going well, and 30% thought Mr Bush was doing a good job of handling the conflict. Even fewer believed the results of the war were worth the cost.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/Iraq/Story/0,,1720507,00.html
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The article calls it like it is: *'s steadfast determination that he is right, no matter what the facts are, Ch*ney's bellyflopping approval rating that can only be viewed now for what it is--rank and file disapproval, and the astonishingly sad news that troops in Iraq think they are there mainly because of 9-11. 
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