Bush Job Approval Up To 35%
As Bush's approval numbers inch upward, satisfaction with where the country is headed is also trending higher.

National NewsPresident Bush's job approval rating has rebounded to 35%, after hitting a all-time low of 30% for the second time earlier this month, the latest Zogby International telephone poll shows.

Bush's job approval rating bump returns him to an approval level he last attained in late October 2006, when his positive marks stood at 36% during a torrid campaign to hold Republican control of both the U.S. House and Senate. Ultimately, that effort failed, and since, his positive numbers have hovered between 30% and 32%. His latest ratings boost now, as he winds up a five-country visit to Latin America, where anti-Bush sentiment runs high in many areas.

Sixty-three percent of Republicans gave Bush positive job marks, up from 61% in our early March poll. This compares to 11% of Democrats, up from 7% in early March. Among self-described independents, the President's positive job rating jumped from 20% in early March to 31% in our most recent poll.

The telephone survey of 1,028 likely voters nationwide was conducted March 7-9, and carries a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points.

In addition to a positive job rating boost for Bush, the same poll finds a slight increase in his ratings for handling the war in Iraq – overall, 26% give him a positive performance rating on the war, up from 23% in polling in early March. While nearly half of Republicans (47%) said they approve of how Bush is handling the war, Republican support is down slightly from the last round of polling, when it stood at 49%.

As Republican support slips slightly, gains have been made among Democrats and independents. Although there is significantly less support for Bush's handling of the war in Iraq among Democrats, 8% give positive ratings to his handling of the war, up from just 3% in the last round of polling. Among independents, 25% approve of Bush's handling of the war, a boost from 15% who said the same earlier this month.

As Bush's approval numbers inch upward, satisfaction with where the country is headed is also trending higher. Overall, 33% said the country is headed in the right direction, an increase from 31% in early March polling. But while Republicans' confidence in the country's direction grew to 57% from 54% earlier this month, Democrats remain skeptical – 16% of Democrats said the U.S. was headed in the right direction earlier this month, compared to just 10% in the most recent poll. Independent voters show the most positive swing, with nearly a third (32%) who believe the nation is headed in the right direction, up from 23% in the last poll.