How nice of AP to cushion the blow to C-Plus Caligula

It should read "Everybody Hates George", but instead it reads:

Poll: Groups Unhappy With Bush Performance

Evangelicals, Republican women, Southerners and other critical groups in President Bush's political coalition are worried about the direction the nation is headed and disappointed with his performance, an AP-Ipsos poll found.

[snip]

Only 28 percent say the country is headed in the right direction while two-thirds, 66 percent, say it is on the wrong track, the poll found.

"There is a growing, deep-seated discontentment and pessimism about the direction of the country," said Republican strategist Tony Fabrizio, who believes the reasons for their pessimism differ for those in one political party or another.

Figure that out all by yourself, Einstein? Perhaps it's because your boy has done to the country what he did with every business he ever ran -- fuck it up beyond recognition.

Among those most likely to have lost confidence about the nation's direction over the past year are white evangelicals, down 30 percentage points since November, Republican women, down 28 points, Southerners, down 26 points, and suburban men, down 20 points.

Bush's supporters are uneasy about issues such as federal deficits, immigration and his latest nomination for the Supreme Court. Social conservatives are concerned about his choice of Miers, a relatively unknown lawyer who has most recently served as White House counsel.

"Bush is trying to get more support generally from the American public by seeming more moderate and showing he's a strong leader at the same time he has a rebellion within his own party," Thurber said. "The far right is starting to be very open about their claim that he's not a real conservative."

The president's job approval is mired at the lowest level of his presidency — 39 percent. While four of five Republicans say they approve of Bush's job performance — enthusiasm in that support has dipped over the last year.

In December 2004, soon after his re-election, almost two-thirds of Republicans strongly approved of the job done by Bush. The AP-Ipsos survey found that just half in his own party feel that way now.

There's only so long even the most die-hard supporters can delude themselves. Oh, sure, there are still the Bush cultists, the women who think he's cute, the knee-jerkers who will support him no matter what. But the rest of the country is waking up. Unfortunately, they're waking up to the nastiest hangover in recorded history.

And as for that headline? When 72% think the country is headed in the wrong direction, that hardly qualifies as "groups." Mobs, perhaps.