100 Down, 1,360 To Go
In her latest Political Points, CBS News Senior Political Editor Dotty Lynch offers some perspective on the first hundred days of the Bush presidency.
Rushing to judgment has become the hallmark of modern journalism. Accordingly, press assessments of President Bush's first 100 days began around day 90. But the 100-day benchmark, which has been used to measure presidents since FDR, has had the Bush White House worried from the start.
Strategist Karl Rove tried to convince reporters that 180 days was a truer benchmark because that's how the "legislative calendar" works. And one Bush adviser claimed they deserved another 36 days to make up for the late start caused by the Florida recount fiasco. Anticipating some stories that would show them coming up short, another Bush adviser did what comes naturally and blamed John McCain for taking up two weeks of the Senate's time on campaign finance reform, an issue clearly not a Bush priority.
|
In addition to te White House offensive, virtually every public and private polling organization has done a 100-day poll. And partisan politics made a return on April 26 when Democratic congressional leaders used the 100-day peg to blast the president's agenda. On the same day, the Democratic National Committee put out a 157-page spin on the Bush presidency accompanied by a TV ad with the tag line, "Republicans – these guys just aren't for us."
Most of the polls have shown that the public gives George W. Bush generally high marks on personal favorability but is still mixed on his agenda.
Here are takes on how Bush is doing on a number of key issues from three different corners - the White House, the Democratic National Committee and the American public, according to a CBS News poll conducted April 23-25:
White House – says the president has shifted a rancorous debate over whether there should be a tax cut to a bipartisan discussion of how large the cuts should be. Bush says he's still pushing for his $1.6 trillion tax cut, but admits he may have to compromise some.
Democrats – say Bush's tax-cut proposal helps the rich and will force budget cuts on items that help average people. They plan to fight hard to lower the amount of the tax cut and restore funds to depleted programs.
Public – generally favors the Bush tax cut (52 percent to 37 percent), but says it is not a priority. And only a third of Americans think that they’ll get more money from the Bush tax plan.
White House – Bush wants to make sure that "no child is left behind" and says that he and the Congress are close to an agreement.
Democrats – say much more money is needed and that Bush's education plan cuts programs that, in fact, will leave many children behind. They also believe an agreement with the White House is probable.
Public – believes, by 52 percent to 41 percent, that Bush will be able to improve education.
White House – Bush says he wants a cleaner environment, less arsenic in water and more drilling for oil and natural gas in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and elsewhere. He told CBS News that the perception that he is anti-environment is untrue and may be due to inaccurate media reporting.
Democrats – say Bush has begun a sustained attack on the environment, from breaking a campaign pledge to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to rolling back arsenic standards for drinking water. They say these policies are the result of the heavy influence of the energy industry in the Bush administration.
Public – Bush's worst ratings come on his handling of the environment. Voters believe he is out of step with them in favoring energy interests over the environment. Over half oppose drilling for oil in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge, and 75 percent say environmentl regulations should be maintained not relaxed.
White House – Bush says he'd like Congress to pass a campaign finance bill he could sign, but many of his conditions are not in McCain-Feingold. Meanwhile, he is embarking on a fund-raising tour designed to generate over $25 million for the Republican Party.
Democrats – say that the influence of special interest money from the energy industry has been particularly strong on the administration's environmental policy decisions.
Public – Voters are skeptical that real campaign finance reform will be enacted.
White House – says the president has taken a clear, decisive and measured approach, built relationships with world leaders and guided the diplomacy that got the spy plane crew back from China.
Democrats – criticize Bush's lack of involvement in foreign policy and cite the confusion of our allies over what American policy really is.
Public – generally supports the president's handling of China (57 percent to 31 percent), but splits evenly on whether they are confident or uneasy on Bush's ability to handle an international crisis.
White House – Bush says he is a CEO, not a micromanager; takes a deliberately low profile on some issues like the riots in Cincinnati and the return of the crew from China; has taken pains to correct a "misperception" that he's not engaged in policy-making.
Democrats – say Bush is missing in action and imply other people are calling the shots in the White House.
Public believes, by 52 percent to 43 percent, that other people are really running the government, but say that's not really different from other administrations.
White House - says the president is "a uniter not a divider" and is working in a bipartisan manner; points to the fact that he has invited more members of the opposition party to the White House than any of his predecessors. Bush has won great support from conservatives
Democrats – say the president is a true conservative and his policy agenda shows that he is for the rich and against working families.
Public – Republicans love him (86 percent favorable vs. 7 percent unfavorable), Democrats don't (35 percent favorable vs. 49 percent unfavorable) and Independents are moderately pleased (56 percent favorable vs. 24 percent unfavorable).
Most historians warn that the first 100 days don't really predict what an administration will actually look like in the end. But Roosevelt historian Dr. William Leuchtenberg was extremely prescient in April of 1993 when he said that the Clinton presidency would go down in history as "stormy and crisis ridden." When we asked him to assess the Bush presidency so far he said they're playing it safe, focusing on a few things and trying not to create any surpries.
©MMI Viacom Internet Services Inc., All Rights Reserved