Obama Tanking Amid Gas Price Surge; Dems Running on Empty

Rising gas prices could doom Democrats in November.

The presidents party has lost control of the presidency in three of the last four elections in which gas prices have risen significantly during his time in office.

And over the last 36 years, the presidents party has never made significant gains in Congress in an election year in which the price of gas rose significantly. More often than not, it has lost double-digit seats.

The Washington Post, whose poll showed Barack Obama's negative rating rising to 50 percent Monday, found that gas price data since 1976 show a solid pattern of the presidents party suffering when gas prices rise.

Gas prices increased by at least 50 cents per gallon in 1980, 2000, 2004 and 2008. Only in 2004 did the presidents party retain the White House. (Gas prices as an issue was somewhat on the back burner in 2004 because of the Iraq War and the 9/11 terrorist attacks.)

The picture is even clearer on the congressional front, the Post said.

Of the nine elections since 1978 in which the price of gas rose in the actual election year, the presidents party lost seats in six of them -- with the average loss at 24 seats.

Meantime, Obama's approval rating has hit the lowest level ever in CBS News polling, according to the latest CBS News/New York Times survey.

Just 41 percent of Americans approve of the job Obama is doing as president, according to the poll, conducted from March 7-11. Another 47 percent disapprove of his performance, up from 41 percent last month.