PRESIDENTIAL APPROVAL - AT 8:52 A.M. ET:  One of the things to watch in the next week or two will be the trend in presidential approval.  In the last week we saw the bankruptcy of General Motors and the president's outreach, somewhat controversial in many circles, to the Muslim world.  Rasmussen reported a sharp drop in presidential approval, which started showing up on Wednesday.  It has continued.  Yesterday's Rasmussen report showed only a six-point gap between those who approve of the president's job performance and those who disapprove, 53-47%.  The approval is the lowest Rasmussen has registered since inauguration.  The disapproval is the highest.

Will this continue?  We'll check Rasmussen's numbers today and report to you, but we stress the importance of watching trends over time.

UPDATE:  Sunday's Rasmussen shows virtually no change, with a seven-point gap between approval and disapproval of the president's performance. 

June 7, 2009