Independent voters losing confidence in Bush

Here's most of the USAToday/CNN/Gallup Poll -

In the poll, 39% of independents approve of the way the Bush administration has handled things in Iraq since Bush declared an end to major combat six months ago; 57% of independents disapprove. In the public overall, the poll found, 47% approve.

In late April, 69% of independents favored the war — about the same level as the general public. Now, 48% of independents support the war, which is 6 percentage points below overall support.

Independents are less inclined to vote for Bush next year than to vote for a Democrat; 35% of registered independent voters choose Bush and 42% choose an unnamed Democrat. Among all registered voters, Bush leads the unnamed Democrat 46%-43%, which is within the 4-point error margin.

Fifty-seven percent say the United States should withdraw some or all of its troops from Iraq. That is up considerably from two months ago, when 46% wanted to withdraw some or all of the troops. Seventy percent of Democrats, 58% of independents and 43% of Republicans want a partial or full withdrawal of troops from Iraq.

Democratic support for the war has fallen more sharply than independent support — from 54% in April to 24% now.

Republican support remains high at 88%.

In a good sign for Bush, the poll found optimism on the economy. For the first time in 16 months, Americans who say the economy is getting better outnumber those who say it is getting worse, 47% to 43%. Last month, 40% said it was getting better and 50% said it was getting worse.