Dana Blanton writes up the latest poll from Fox News.

Today, 41 percent of voters approve and 51 percent disapprove of President Bush’s performance, which is the lowest job rating he has received in a FOX News poll. The president’s approval rating is down 4 percentage points from two weeks ago (45 percent, August 30-31), around the time the magnitude of Katrina’s damage was becoming clear. Before the hurricane, 47 percent approved and 44 percent disapproved (July 26-27).

For most of Bush’s presidency, approval among his party faithful has not only been well above 80 percent, but also for a significant amount of time above 90 percent. The average approval rating for his presidency among Republicans is 90 percent; today 81 percent approve. Bush’s approval rating has gone into single digits among Democrats, coming in at 8 percent in this week’s poll. For independents, 30 percent approve.

Pew also has some new data that should have Congressional Dems feeling pretty happy.

As was the case in the spring, Americans are largely critical of the overall performance of both major parties. But the Republicans face greater political dangers. In an early test of strength on next year's midterm elections, Republicans trail by 52%-40% among registered voters. Equally important, Democrats are favored on most major issues. Even on terrorism, which consistently has been a Republican strength, the GOP's advantage has narrowed.

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In addition to favoring the Democratic Party on its traditional strengths such as reforming the health care system and protecting the environment, pluralities today also pick the Democrats to handle energy problems, Social Security, and education. On the important issues of the economy and Iraq, the public is more divided, with the Democrats holding only a slight edge. And on the issue of ensuring that the government can handle major disasters, 40% favor the Democrats, while 34% choose the Republicans.

The single issue that still works to the Republican Party's advantage is dealing with the terrorist threat at home ­ 45% say the Republicans can do a better job on this, while 34% choose the Democrats. But even here, the GOP's edge has narrowed significantly as the Democrats have made gains. In the lead-up to the 2002 midterm the Republican Party held a two-to-one (44% vs. 22%) edge on this issue.

Importantly, independents are heavily leaning towards the Democrats. While non-affiliated voters are less likely to turn out on election day -- particularly during mid-terms -- this is a trend that should please those hoping to see a change in the Congressional leadership.