President Bush and the Environment
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Sunday is Earth Day, and environmental issues are getting attention from the Bush administration in advance of that day. CNN's Jeanne Meserve joining us from Washington with more on that -- Jeanne, hello.</s>JEANNE MESERVE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Daryn. In advance of Earth Day, President Bush has announced four pro- environmental actions in four days. Yesterday, accompanied by his EPA director and his secretary of state, Mr. Bush said he would sign the Stockholm Treaty, which curtails the use of 12 chemicals linked to cancer and birth defects. Most of the substances like DDT and PCBs already are restricted in industrialized nations, but pose a threat in developing nations. The backdrop is the latest Gallup poll, which shows the president with an overall approval rating of 59 percent. But on he environment, that rating drops to 49 percent. Here with me to discuss these matters, Mark Mellman, a Democratic pollster and CEO of Mellman Group and also Keating Holland, CNN polling director. Keating, I know you have looked at the numbers behind the Gallup numbers. What do you see?</s>KEATING HOLLAND, CNN POLLING DIRECTOR: The environment was always a problem for Bush throughout the campaign. It looks like it's still a problem for him. One thing that we're noticing in the Gallup poll is that there hasn't been a drop, or a significant drop, in his approval rating on the environment since the decisions on arsenic, CO2, the Kyoto Treaty, etcetera. The people who really dislike him on the environment are college- educated Americans. And surprisingly, we're not seeing a gender gap on the environment. Suburban moms in particular, who some people inside the Beltway were worried about, what would their reaction be, we're seeing that they like the environmental record of George Bush so far.</s>MESERVE: Mark, are you coming up with different results in your polling?</s>MARK MELLMAN, DEMOCRATIC POLLSTER: Well, we're finding to the extent people have heard about these Bush decisions, they are very upset about them. The fact that there are very few Americans who want more arsenic in their water, more carbon in the air, or want to see our national forests cut down. Up till now, George Bush has been appealing to that very narrow segment of big business special interests who profit by those kinds of moves. And he's alienating large segments of the public who like to protect their health, their health of their families, leave their kids a decent environmental legacy.</s>MESERVE: But we should point out that the polling we're referring to is all done before his recent actions, which have a more pro-environmental stance. Is it your guess, Mark, that polling today would show you different results?</s>MELLMAN: You know, I don't think so. The reality is George Bush has dug himself a very deep hole on the environment. All he's doing now is allowing to go into effect and taking credit for things that Bill Clinton did. What he did earlier in putting more arsenic in the water and carbon in the air is really to reverse things that Bill Clinton had already put into place. Now he's trying to take credit for letting Clinton initiatives fall into place.</s>MESERVE: Well, whether or not he's trying to do that, one could debate that. Keating, do you think it's going to change the poll numbers on the environment?</s>HOLLAND: Probably not all that much. I don't really think people are paying a lot of attention to the details, except again for college-educated people who have a tendency to look at the details on things like this.</s>MESERVE: Mark, how do the Democrats use this issue?</s>MELLMAN: Well, I think Democrats will be talking about the fact that George Bush is, to the benefit of his special interest contributors, he's allowing industry to put more arsenic in the water, put more carbon on the air, cut down those national forests. That's something that I think most Americans really resent. It alienates most Americans. I think Democrats will be talking about it. But there's a substantive argument here. There's also a character argument. People are not only concerned about the substance of these issues, but it also cements in people's minds the notion that George Bush is much more interested in benefiting big business, special interests, than he is average people.</s>MESERVE: Quickly, Keating, does the environment win or lose elections?</s>HOLLAND: Usually it doesn't make much difference. But, Mark is right. If they can make it into character issue, this is something we were hearing the Democrats do throughout the 2000 campaign, if you can talk about Bush as being in the pocket of big interests and using the environment as an example of that where he doesn't care about the little guy, maybe that's something where they can nick him arm a little bit.</s>MESERVE: Mark, before you leave, I know you've been polling on a wide range of issues. I'm sure you're probing for weaknesses. Where else have you found a decline in President Bush's numbers?</s>MELLMAN: Well, clearly, the economy is something that people are obviously seeing a turn in their perceptions of the economy. And at the end of the day, George Bush will be held responsible for that. The other key fact is what's happening with the promises he made. Why isn't proposing prescription drug coverage as he promised? Why isn't he protecting HMO patients, as he promised? People beginning to wonder when those promises are going to be kept.</s>MESERVE: But on the upside, China is working for him, isn't it?</s>MELLMAN: It is. At least temporarily.</s>MESERVE: OK, Mark Mellman and also Keating Holland, thank you so much for joining us. Earth Day coming up on Sunday. Daryn and Leon, back to you.