Poll shows voters abandoning prez in droves


WASHINGTON -- President Obama's overall approval rating has sunk to a new low -- and independent voters who propelled him to the White House have gotten downright sick of the job he's doing, according to a devastating poll released yesterday.

Obama's job-approval rating has tanked to a dismal 29 percent among independents, the Marist College survey found. His disapproval rating is nearly twice as high -- 57 percent.

Obama's overall approval among all registered voters hit a new low of 44 percent, the lowest of any poll that uses people to survey voters.

The near-total loss of independents could prove catastrophic for Democrats if the trend holds through Election Day this year.

Democrats lost independents in off-year elections in New Jersey and Virginia, and most recently in Massachusetts last month, when the party lost Ted Kennedy's old seat.