June 28 (Bloomberg) -- Only about a third of Americans say they think the U.S. and its allies are winning the war against insurgents in Iraq, the lowest level yet, according to a poll by Gallup for USA Today and Cable News Network.

Just 34 percent of Americans say the coalition is winning the war against an insurgency whose attacks have claimed more than 1,000 lives since Iraqi Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari on April 28 named members of his cabinet. That's down from 43 percent in February, and the lowest out of four times the question has been asked since October. Poll data was published on the Gallup web site.

``Over the past several months, Americans are increasingly pessimistic that the United States and its allies are winning the war,'' Gallup said. ``At the same time, many Americans have had second thoughts about whether the original decision to launch the war against Iraq was justified.''

The poll comes as U.S. President George W. Bush, under pressure from public opinion, prepares to deliver a speech today aimed at making the case for his Iraq policy. The 8- percentage point margin between those who approve of Bush's handling of his job, and those who disapprove, is the largest measured by Gallup during the leader's presidency, according to the pollster.

While Bush last week said it doesn't ``make sense'' to have a timetable for the pullout of the 135,000-strong American force, 51 percent of those polled by Gallup said the U.S. should set a schedule for removing troops. Another 44 percent said the military should stay there until the situation ``gets better.''

Bush's Ratings Fall

More than half of Americans say the war in Iraq was a mistake, almost half think the war has made them less safe from terrorism, and nine out of 20 say they think the U.S. won't ever be able to establish a stable government in the middle eastern nation, according to poll data.

The poll also shows declining approval ratings for Bush. About 58% said they disapproved of the president's handling of the situation in Iraq, matching the percentage in a May 2004 poll, the highest since at least January 2004. More than 6 in 10 people said Bush doesn't have a ``clear plan'' for handling the situation in Iraq, the highest percentage since at least August 2003.

A total of 45 percent of those polled said they approved of bush's handling of his job, matching the proportion in a March poll, the lowest of the year so far. Two percent gave no opinion, and 53 percent disapproved -- the highest of the year.

Gallup polled 1,009 adults by telephone between June 24 and June 26. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points. On some questions, including one about whether citizens feel safer or less safe from terrorism as a result of the war in Iraq, a smaller sample was used. On those questions, the margin of error is plus or minus five percentage points.



To contact the reporter on this story:
Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.net