Bush, Congress Score Lowest Approval Yet

President Bush and Congress scored record-low approval ratings in a Reuters/Zogby poll released today. Bush dipped 1% below his previous Zogby approval rating of 30%; the legislative branch scored 11% approval, down 3% in August. And a new "mood index" showed the country as more unhappy than in July, with 62% saying the US is on the wrong track.

"The public mood is not just dark. What's darker than dark?" pollster John Zogby said. "The mood is getting ugly." The decreased ratings are likely attributable to fears of recession in the wake of the recent mortgage crisis. In addition, much of the polling was done soon after Gen. David Petraeus' testimony that Iraq troop levels would remain high. (More Congress stories.)