Here is a great resource charting the ups and downs of Presidential approval. The general trend is for approval to be lower at the end than at the beginning of a term (even for Kennedy). This concurs with my observations as I visited several Presidential Museums last summer. The only one that seems to have ended higher than when he started is President Clinton's, which surprises me. Additionally, contrary to what you hear in the MSM, both Truman and Nixon, and even Carter, had lower approval ratings than "W" up until this last year.
If you click on the links on the left of the main page you will see various events correlated to the ups and downs. It is interesting to see the end and start at the transition points. The disparity between Truman and Eisenhower, between Carter and Reagan reflect world events and a populous looking for a "change of course". The almost continuity between Reagan and Bush 42 makes sense. But the continuity between Bush 42 and Clinton, and then Clinton and "W" is odd.
If you click on the links on the left of the main page you will see various events correlated to the ups and downs. It is interesting to see the end and start at the transition points. The disparity between Truman and Eisenhower, between Carter and Reagan reflect world events and a populous looking for a "change of course". The almost continuity between Reagan and Bush 42 makes sense. But the continuity between Bush 42 and Clinton, and then Clinton and "W" is odd.