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MORE GREAT POLLING NEWS:

WASHINGTON POST/ABC NEWS:

12/21/03 59% approve 38% disapprove (+21)
12/14/03 57% approve 39% disapprove (+18)
12/07/03 53% approve 40% disapprove (+13)

Interesting crosstab stats:

PARTY
Republicans: 90% approve
Independents: 60% approve
Democrats: 32% approve

REGION
Midwest: 60% approve
South: 62% approve
West: 64% approve
East: 49% approve

ELECTION
Bush: 55%
Dean: 37%

EXCERPT:

Bush Gets Year-End Boost in Approval
Poll Shows Dean Surging Among Democratic Rivals

By Dan Balz and Richard Morin
Washington Post Staff Writers
Tuesday, December 23, 2003; Page A01

Growing optimism about the economy and a spike in support for going to war in Iraq have given President Bush a sharp year-end boost in his approval ratings, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll, suggesting that the president is in a strong position politically as he looks toward his reelection campaign next year.

The boost for Bush comes after the capture of former Iraqi president Saddam Hussein and a succession of brighter economic indicators that helped to reverse a decline in his ratings that began in the early fall. His overall approval rating stands at 59 percent in the poll, the highest since August, when increased U.S. casualties and terrorist attacks in Iraq led the public to question his policies.

The poll also shows former Vermont governor Howard Dean surging ahead of his rivals in the battle for the Democratic presidential nomination, cementing his status as the party's front-runner a month before the first major contests, in Iowa and New Hampshire. But when matched against the president, Dean fares badly, both in a hypothetical trial heat and on who is trusted to handle both national security and domestic issues. Even many Democrats said they still know little about Dean or his views.

The poll findings show why many Democrats are nervous about Dean as a potential candidate against Bush. They also underscore the concern within the party that, because of the heavily front-loaded primary and caucus calendar, a Democratic nominee may effectively be picked before party activists outside a few early states have had a chance to evaluate the candidates and participate in the decision.

The poll also shows greater confidence in Bush's handling of both Iraq and the economy. On Iraq, three in five (60 percent) said they approve of how he is dealing with events there, compared with 48 percent in mid-November, and 59 percent said the war was worth fighting, up six points in a week.

Americans were evenly divided over whether Bush has a clear plan for handling the situation in Iraq (48 percent to 47 percent), but that marks an improvement for Bush after four months of net negative assessments on that question. Nearly seven in 10 want the president to give the United Nations and other countries a larger role in the reconstruction effort in Iraq.

On the economy, a bare majority (51 percent) approve of Bush's performance, the first time he has been above 50 percent since late April. The new poll found that 42 percent of Americans rate the economy as "good" or "excellent," up from 33 percent in late October. The percentage who rate the economy as "not so good" or "poor" (57 percent) is the lowest since just before the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A22493-2003Dec22.html

OK -- REALLY, I'm off to wrap presents!