For the Record.(poll by the Washington Post shows a 58% approval rating for President George W. Bush)(this and other items are discussed)(Brief Article)

--In Washington Post poll, President Bush wins 58 percent approval rating. . . . Bush eulogizes John Cardinal O'Connor at St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City: "The world will remember the gallant defender of children and their vulnerability, innocence, and their right to be born." Even pro-abortion senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer join in long standing ovation. . . . Treasury secretary Paul H. O'Neill on tax code: "9,500 pages of gibberish." . . . Rep. J. C. Watts (R., Okla.) responds to Bush administration's NAACP critics: "I found them misleading, disappointing, and far below the standards befitting an institution as storied and influential as the NAACP." . . . Falling fuel prices dampen prospects of Bush energy plan in Congress. . . . U.S. trade representative Robert Zoellick in Heritage Foundation speech on trade-promotion authority: "This is not an abstract debate on trade policy. I'm at the table now-every day- negotiating with countries from around the world. They have the full authority to negotiate for their nations' interests. I need it, too. So now it is time. Not next year. Not later this year. But now."

--Solicitor general Ted Olson asks Supreme Court to hear Ohio school- choice case, writing that lawmakers must know "whether such programs are a constitutionally permissible option for expanding education opportunity for children enrolled in failing public schools across America, or whether other solutions must be sought for this critical national problem." . . . Family Research Council president Ken Connor on stem-cell debate, in New York Times: "There should be a nonnegotiable principle that says innocent human life is sacrosanct and on this we will not compromise." . . . Republican National Committee raises $48.6 million in first six months of 2001, compared to $23.5 million for Democratic National Committee. . . . Robert Sherman of Federation of American Scientists on successful missile-defense test: "To hit a ballistic missile with an interceptor under any circumstances is a very impressive technological feat."

--In Mason-Dixon poll, 51 percent of Georgians say they would approve of Sen. Zell Miller (D.) switching to GOP. . . . Sen. Lincoln Chafee (R., R.I.) comments on what he calls the GOP's "aggressive right-wing agenda," in Washington Post: "It might be better [if Democrats control Senate because] we might not be passing any good legislation, but we won't be passing any bad legislation." . . . More Chafee: "I'll stick my foot in some dog-doo before the day is over. I have a propensity for that." . . . Rep. Mike Castle (R., Del.) says he won't run against Sen. Joe Biden (D.) next year because ...