US President George W. Bush's approval rating slipped to a career low of 45 per cent on concerns over the Iraq war and spiraling US fuel prices, according to a poll published yesterday.
The poll of more than 1,000 people found that 57 per cent disapprove of Bush's handling of the war and 68 per cent regard the level of American casualties as unacceptable.
But a majority of respondents, 54 per cent, said the United States should keep its forces in Iraq until civil order is restored. Fifty-nine per cent said they do not think a deadline should be set for the withdrawal of US troops.
Bush has rejected anti-war protesters' calls for a troop withdrawal and appealed to Americans not to waver because of the rising death toll, now nearly 1,900.
Bush's overall rating was two percentage points down from the previous low of 47 per cent, according to the ABC News/Washington Postpoll.
Disapproval of Bush's Iraq policy has been steady since December, but he maintains majority approval for his handling of terrorism more broadly, the poll found.
Fifty-six per cent approve of his work on terrorism, up from 50 per cent in early June.
On the domestic front, those polled were most concerned about record high gasoline prices which experts fear could spike ever higher as major refineries remained shut after Hurricane Katrina.
Seventy-three per cent of respondents said they disapprove of Bush's handling of the problem, compared to 22 per cent approval.
Two-thirds said gas prices were causing them financial hardship and 60 per cent said they think the Bush administration could take measures to ease gas prices, according to the poll.
The poll of 1,006 adults was conducted August 25th through August 28th and has a three-point error margin.