'Everyone's patience can last only so long'

President Bush still has a 52 percent job approval rating in Alabama, according to a Mobile Register poll conducted last week. That's down 5 points from May 2004 and within the poll's margin of error, so the decline may be less statistically significant than it appears on the surface.

At any rate, Bush's popularity in Alabama remains considerably higher than it is nationally, where recent polls show his approval rating has dipped as low as 36 percent. As poll director Keith Nicholls said, "The people of Alabama are, on average, more patient with the situation than people nationwide, but everyone's patience can last only so long."