WASHINGTON, Sept 15: President George Bush’s approval rating continued its downward spiral in two polls out on Thursday, reaching new lows on his performance in the ‘war on terror’ and Iraq, and on handling the Hurricane Katrina aftermath. A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll released Thursday showed Bush’s overall ratings sank to 40, a record low.

Forty-nine per cent of those polled believe the US economy will worsen over the next year. And 55 per cent support bringing US troops home from Iraq, while just 36 per cent support Mr Bush’s policy of keeping the troops in place until peace can be guaranteed. Nearly 60 per cent of those polled said they were unhappy with the Bush administration’s response to Hurricane Katrina.—AFP