After reading here, at electionprojection and at RCP about the generic ballot, it is probably a worthless indicator, regardless of whether it would seem to be good or bad for us.

Kudos to USAT for playing the story straight.

Most references to the 55% approval on terror-and-security I've seen have mentioned the highs shortly after 9/11, before the left reverted to form, and failed to mention it is higher than since February '05.

As we discussed on the other thread, Presidential approval doesn't have to be high for success in other races. You pointed out that even Reagan's high approvals didn't help the GOP in '86. There is no correlation, as Brian Billings notes above, but the narrowing of the generic ballot question combined with rising approval numbers for Bush certainly can't hurt!

:-D

I agree, the generic ballot is probably a worthless indicator, however the new polls makes it more difficult for the MSM/Dems to use it as a talking point. They will but......

"it is probably a worthless indicator, regardless of whether it would seem to be good or bad for us".

ABSOLUTELY, Brian!!! Polls are fun to read, but Summer Polls (for either party) are TOTAL GARBAGE as Jay Cost of the Horse Race Blog and recent articles at Real Clear Politics has explained so well.

Also, this poll happened over a weekend, usually a heavily Democratic time frame for polling. I wonder if Olbermann and Andrew Sullivan will continue to "question the timing" of the UK arrests.

Actually, most Americans understand that not only was Iraq a mistake, they also see that our government has no plan and no intention of developing a new plan, terrorist attacks have not dropped off around the world, hatred of Americans and the west has increased, tensions are high, Israel is more unpopular than ever, and all the GOP does is parrot talking points about "fighting them over there so we don't fight them over here" (which ignores that we are not fighting al qaida effectively anywhere, while wrongly conflating Iraqi insurgents and nationalists with al Qaida).

Of course its easy for the GOP to play the fear card, to imply that using warrants to tap phones is some needless obstruction, to imply that Democrats want to play nice with terrorists, that torture is somehow American, and that collateral damage is just part of the game when you invade a sovereign nation that was broke, powerless and decimated by sanctions.

The GOP is always worried more about staying in power than they are about doing the right thing for the country, admitting a mistake, or treating terrorism like a serious issue instead of a political playing card.

The tragedy is tens of thousands of dead Iraqis, thousands of American casualties, and hundreds of billions thrown away on an immoral and illegal war.

America rules the world like an extralegal member of the mafia, holding a gun to everyone while its citizens blindly take all the fruits and demand more, never asking about our state-sponsored terrorism, the innocent we kill, and the poverty we often (not always) subject people to so that we can extend our luxury lives. Since it wins votes and puts smiles on Americans faces, however, no party and few Americans are willing to stand up and say what is right.

P.S. If you don't question the timing of arrests (despite loads of correlations and even Tom Ridge saying "we don't know why they did this at times") then you are a blind party loyalist and a blight to our country. If you think the GOP never plays politics with terror, but you are certain that a decorated Marine veteran condemned soldiers, your brain is broken. Word.