Polling Report informs us that, according to a new Pew poll, Bush's job approval rating has dropped seven percentage points in just under three weeks. The survey was conducted over five days; the Top Gun stunt and speech were on the evening of Day 2. Hey, I thought we were all "entertained and impressed" by the Top Gun stunt! Margaret Carlson said we were. So why didn't a five-day poll in which three of the days were post-Top Gun show an uptick in approval?

UPDATE: This is from Gallup:

Speech Does Little to Affect Viewers' Opinions on Iraq

Speech watchers, like the adult population in previous Gallup Polls, are somewhat cautious in their assessment of the Iraqi war's end. Fifty-four percent say the war is over, while a substantial proportion (44%) says it is not. Bush's declaration that major combat is now over in Iraq did little to affect speech watchers' views on this matter, as prior to his address, 52% believed the war was over. Bush mentioned weapons of mass destruction several times during the speech; still, speech watchers' views on this topic did not change as a result of the speech. Seventy-nine percent of speech watchers say the war is justified even if such weapons are not found, the same percentage of this group who said this prior to the speech.

Bush's speech did have a slight positive effect on speech watchers' opinions about U.S. policy in Iraq. Seventy-four percent of those who watched the speech say the Bush administration has a clear plan for what to do in Iraq now that the major fighting has ended. Prior to the speech, 64% of the group thought this.

So the Top Gun stunt and speech weren't transformational experiences, apparently -- except, perhaps, for pundits.