GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- President George W. Bush continues his six-day visit to Asia while receiving high public approval for his handling of foreign affairs. In fact, Bush's latest foreign affairs approval rating of 79%, measured in a Feb. 4-6 Gallup poll, is the fourth highest since 1971 when Gallup first polled on this aspect of the U.S. president's job. So far, Bush's average rating for handling international matters currently rivals his father's, who had the highest term average among recent presidents.
Bush's Foreign Affairs Approval Among the Highest
Similar to his overall job approval rating, Bush's foreign affairs approval surged following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Prior to that date, Bush's average foreign approval rating was 53%. The three readings on his handling of foreign affairs since Sept. 11 have averaged 81%.
| Bush Approval on Foreign Affairs |
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So far, Bush has averaged a 63% foreign affairs approval rating for his term. Among recent presidents, only the elder George Bush had a higher average rating for his term at 65% (Gallup began measuring approval of presidents' handling of foreign affairs in 1971 and has done so regularly since 1980). Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, and Bill Clinton all averaged less than 50% approval for their handling of international matters.
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Average Foreign Affairs Approval Ratings for Recent Presidents |
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President |
Average Foreign Affairs Approval Rating for Term |
Number of Ratings |
Average Job Approval for Term |
|
% |
|
% |
|
|
Jimmy Carter |
46 |
4 |
45 |
|
Ronald Reagan |
43 |
33 |
53 |
|
George Bush |
65 |
20 |
61 |
|
Bill Clinton |
48 |
69 |
55 |
|
George W. Bush |
63 |
8 |
69 |
Presidents' foreign affairs job approval ratings tend to mirror their overall job approval, although not precisely. As the table above shows, most recent presidents tend to have a slightly lower average approval rating for their handling of foreign affairs than for handling their job as president overall. Only the elder George Bush shows the opposite pattern, with a higher foreign affairs rating than overall job rating. Carter's overall and foreign affairs ratings were essentially equal, while Reagan's average foreign affairs approval rating was 10 percentage points lower than his overall approval rating. George W. Bush's foreign affairs approval rating to date is also slightly lower than his overall average.
Top Ten Foreign Affairs Approval Ratings Belong to Bushes
Since Sept. 11, George W. Bush has received three of the highest individual foreign affairs approval ratings since Gallup began measuring these in 1971 (a total of 136 measurements). His high of 83% from Jan. 25-27, 2002 ranks as the second highest score, and his current mark of 79% is tied for fourth highest. The elder George Bush has the highest rating, 84%, taken at the conclusion of the Persian Gulf War, and he also holds seven of the top 10 scores -- all from 1991.
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Highest Foreign Affairs Approval Ratings, 1971-2002 |
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|
President |
Rating |
Dates |
|
% |
||
|
George Bush |
84 |
1991 Feb 28-Mar 3 |
|
George W. Bush |
83 |
2002 Jan 25-27 |
|
George W. Bush |
81 |
2001 Oct 5-6 |
|
George Bush |
79 |
1991 Mar 7-10 |
|
George W. Bush |
79 |
2002 Feb 4-6 |
|
George Bush |
74 |
1991 Aug 23-25 |
|
George Bush |
71 |
1991 Jul 18-21 |
|
George Bush |
70 |
1991 Sep 13-15 |
|
George Bush |
70 |
1991 Oct 3-6 |
|
George Bush |
68 |
1991 Aug 8-11 |
While the two Bushes hold all of the 10 highest foreign affairs approval ratings, Reagan and Clinton hold 9 of the 10 lowest, with Jimmy Carter having the other. Ronald Reagan has the lowest recorded score at 31% in August 1983.
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Lowest Foreign Affairs Approval Ratings, 1971-2002 |
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|
President |
Rating |
Dates |
|
% |
||
|
Ronald Reagan |
31 |
1983 Aug 19-22 |
|
Ronald Reagan |
32 |
1983 Apr 15-18 |
|
Ronald Reagan |
32 |
1984 Mar 16-19 |
|
Jimmy Carter |
33 |
1980 Sep 12-15 |
|
Bill Clinton |
33 |
1994 Jul 15-17 |
|
Ronald Reagan |
34 |
1986 Dec 4-5 |
|
Bill Clinton |
34 |
1993 Nov 2-4 |
|
Bill Clinton |
34 |
1994 Jun 25-28 |
|
Bill Clinton |
34 |
1994 Aug 15-16 |
|
Bill Clinton |
34 |
1994 Sep 6-7 |
Reagan's historical low rating was not tied to a single event, in the way George Bush's high in 1991 was a direct outcome of the Persian Gulf War. Rather, several issues served to make the public critical of Reagan's handling of foreign affairs. Specifically, in August 1983, Reagan got very low marks for his handling of the situations in Central America (24% approval) and the Middle East (32% approval) and only slightly better ratings for his handling of relations with the Soviet Union (41% approval). Additionally, the public was divided as to how he was handling disarmament negotiations with the Soviets (39% approved and 38% disapproved). A plurality of Americans thought his defense policies were bringing the U.S. closer to war (43%) as opposed to bringing the country closer to peace (27%).
Clinton's low score in July 1994 also was not directly tied to a single event, but was due in part to public criticism of his handling of policy toward Haiti (28% approval) and Bosnia (31% approval).
Both Reagan's and Clinton's low foreign affairs ratings came at times when their overall job ratings and their ratings of handling the economy were also low, suggesting that these generally negative perceptions of their presidencies at that time had some impact on their foreign affairs ratings.
