JANE MARTINSON

May 28, 2001

Half of all Americans doubt whether they can trust President George Bush four months after he took office, according to a nationwide poll, commissioned by Time magazine and CNN. The poll follows in the wake of Senator Jim Jeffords' defection from the ruling Republican party last week.

The crisis, which tips the balance of power in favour of the Democratic party in the Senate, has raised questions about the Bush administration's decision to push ahead with a strongly conservative agenda in spite of its weak mandate. Mr Jeffords renounced his party membership in protest at what he saw as the government's hardline approach on education and the environment.

In the poll carried out just after this decision was announced on Thursday, 53% of Americans said they had doubts and reservations about whether or not Mr Bush was a leader they could trust.

The survey of more than 1,000 Americans also revealed a worrying lack of support for some of the president's favourite policy initiatives. Only 38% approved of his plans to deal with the country's energy problems, for example.

Under plans drawn up by Vice-President Dick Cheney, the US is to encourage more fuel supplies from controversial sources such as nuclear energy and fossil fuel. Mr Jeffords, who represents Vermont, joined the Senate in the mid-1960s on a pro-environment platform.

After supporting the Bush candidacy during last year's campaign, Mr Jeffords was horrified by the apparent volte-face on several key policy initiatives, including energy and special needs education.

The Time/CNN poll, which is subject to a 3% margin of error, also found that Bush's approval rating had slipped from 55% in March to 52%.

Even after the fall, however, Bush is enjoying higher approval ratings than Bill Clinton did at this point in his first term, but significantly lower than that of his father George Bush Sr.

If Mr Bush were to run in 2004, half of all Americans said it was "somewhat unlikely" or "very unlikely" they would vote for him.

Yesterday Americans were calculating the size of their promised tax rebates, a day after the US Congress approved a $1.35 trillion tax cut over the next 11 years and gave President Bush his first major legislative victory.

Congress gave approval on Saturday in a move that Mr Bush called "an important boost" for the US economy. The first rebate cheques are expected to reach taxpayers this summer

The tax cut plan was a central plank in Mr Bush's election campaign. The bill's approval followed the major political setback caused by Mr Jeffords' defection. Now, victory on the tax refund question has allowed the Bush team to regain its political footing.

Critics of the measure said wealthy taxpayers would get the largest share of the benefits, but some late changes, including some immediate rebates, provide lower-income taxpayers with more help in the first few years.

"We listened to the voices of those in my party and in the Democratic party who wanted additional help for those at the lowest end of the economic ladder," said Mr Bush.