Poll: Majority of Americans pleased with House tax cut vote

By Keating Holland/CNN

	MESSAGE BOARD
Taxing and spending

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Most Americans approve of last week's vote in the House of Representatives to approve President Bush's tax cut plan, but only 41 percent want the Senate to rubber-stamp that proposal and nearly 60 percent support a "trigger" provision that would halt tax cuts in the face of a looming federal budget deficit, according to a new CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll released Monday.

The poll combines the results of interviews with 1,015 adult Americans between March 9 and 11. The sampling error is plus or minus three percentage points.

The deficit is the issue that is most likely to change the minds of current supporters of the tax cut bill, but that may be a hard sell -- most Americans agree with Bush that the government has enough money for education, Social Security and debt reduction, and still has money left over for a tax cut.

The tax cut bill is also popular because more than 60 percent say it would help them personally and boost the economy. But the public sees room for improvement in the current bill as passed by the House.

Three-quarters would favor changes to the bill in the Senate that would direct more of the tax cuts to lower-income Americans, and 59 percent would support Senate efforts to lower the total amount of tax cuts.

Outright opposition to the tax cut bill is a different matter. Only 17 percent of all Americans currently say they don't want the Senate to pass any tax cut, and while the public worries about the effects of the bill on Social Security, the federal budget, and the rich, that doesn't translate into immediate opposition to tax cuts.

Some 75 percent of all Americans, for example, say that the tax cut would mostly benefit the rich, but just 47 percent say that they would be less likely to support the tax cut for that reason.

The specter of deficit spending might be the best weapon tax cut opponents have to turn the public against the bill. Most supporters of tax cut legislation say they aren't likely to change their minds even if they believed the bill would take money from Social Security or give too much money to the rich.

But about half of all Americans who currently support the tax cut say they would be less likely to do so if they thought the bill would cause a federal budget deficit.

CNN/USA TODAY/GALLUP POLL
March 9-11

As you may know, on Thursday the House of Representatives passed a plan to cut federal income taxes that had been proposed by President Bush. Do you approve or disapprove of that vote?

Now, the Senate will consider the tax cut plan passed by the House. Do you think the Senate should pass the tax cut plan substantially as the House passed it, pass the tax cut plan, but only with major changes, or reject the tax cut?

Would you support changes to the tax cut plan?

Would you favor more of the tax cuts going to lower-Income Americans?

Would you favor stopping tax cuts if a deficit was likely?

Would you favor lowering the total amount of tax cuts?

Do you think the federal government has enough money for education and Social Security, paying down the federal debt, as well as the tax cut that the House of Representatives passed on Thursday?

If the tax cut plan is enacted, how likely is it that each of the following would happen -- very likely, somewhat likely, not too likely, or not at all likely?

Would you be likely to oppose a tax cut bill if it would...

As a tax cut supporters, would you oppose the bill if it...

Do you think the tax cut is likely to help...

President Bush's approval rating has dropped five points since last week despite a major victory for his tax cut plan in the House of Representatives.

In a Gallup poll taken Monday through Wednesday, 63 percent of all Americans approved of how Bush was handling his job as president. In the current poll, taken Friday through Sunday, that figure dropped slightly to 58 percent. The House vote on the tax cut bill was taken Thursday.

That drop is probably not due to any Democratic complaints about how Bush won his tax cut victory -- six in 10 say that the president has cooperated enough with the Democrats in Congress while just 51 percent say that the Democrats have cooperated enough with Bush. Instead, it appears that the honeymoon for Bush is ending right on schedule.

Decades ago a new president could count on his honeymoon with the public lasting at least until April or May. The earliest a president experienced a 5-point drop in his approval in those days was Jimmy Carter in April of 1977.

But starting with Bush's father in 1989, honeymoons have gotten shorter. The elder Bush and Bill Clinton both saw 6- to 7-point drops after their first month in office. Most Americans approve of how the younger Bush is currently handling a wide range of issues from education to international affairs. But the number who have a favorable view of him has dropped from 69 percent to 63 percent in the last few days.

Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling his job as president?

Past approval ratings

Since the start of this year -- when George W. Bush became president -- would you say President Bush has cooperated enough with the Democrats in Congress, or not?

Since the start of this year -- when George W. Bush became president -- would you say the Democrats in Congress have cooperated enough with President Bush, or not?

Approval rating: President Bush

Do you approve or disapprove of the way George W. Bush is handling (a) the economy (b) foreign affairs (c) taxes (d) education (e) Social Security (f) campaign finance?

Concern about Dick Cheney's health problems has risen since November, when he had his most recent heart attack, but a majority of Americans remain unconcerned about the vice president's health, and two-thirds say he should continue with his current duties.

Only 21 percent say that Cheney should remain as vice president, but cut back on the amount of work he does, and just 11 percent say he should resign from office.

On another matter, are you concerned or not concerned that Vice President Dick Cheney's health problems will prevent him from serving effectively as vice president?

Which comes closest to your view concerning Vice President Dick Cheney's health problems -- Cheney should resign as vice president, Cheney should remain as vice president, but cut back on his duties, or Cheney should remain as vice president and continue with his current duties with little or no change.

More than six in 10 Americans say that the controversy over the pardons Clinton granted in his final days in office is important to the country, but only 18 percent say that Clinton's actions were illegal. Some 57 percent say that Clinton's actions concerning the pardons were unethical and just 22 percent say he did not do anything seriously wrong.

By comparison, 29 percent felt that Clinton had done something illegal in Whitewater in 1998, but only 45 percent felt that Whitewater was an important matter.

How important an issue do you think these pardons are to the nation -- very important, somewhat important, not too important, or not important at all?

Which of the following statements best describes your view of Bill Clinton's actions relating to the pardons -- Bill Clinton did something illegal, he did something unethical, but not illegal, or he did not do anything seriously wrong?

Opinion of Jesse Jackson continues to fall among all Americans.

In February, 1999, 59 percent of the general public had a favorable view of Jackson, but that dropped to 46 percent in December and 33 percent today. Some 74 percent of African-Americans have a favorable view of Jackson (compared to only 27 percent of whites), but his support among blacks has also dropped since last year, from 92 percent in December.

Next, we'd like to get your overall opinion of some people in the news. As I read each name, please say if you have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of this person -- or if you have never heard of him.

Jesse Jackson

Opinion of Jesse Jackson

Opinion of Jesse Jackson among African-Americans

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