WHILE 62 PERCENT of Americans say they would support the use of military force against Iraq, that figure is down nearly 20 points from the 81 percent who supported such an action last October. Nearly one third of those polled (31 percent) would not support the use of military force in Iraq (7 percent aren’t sure).
President George W. Bush’s overall approval rating has shown a similar slide; it’s now at 61 percent, down 4 percent from the last poll in mid-July and down 27 percent from a high of 88 percent last October.
A large majority of those polled think it is either very (61 percent) or somewhat (24 percent) important that Bush solicit congressional approval before moving on Iraq. Eighty-six percent say building support among European allies is also very (58 percent) or somewhat (28 percent) important, and a similar number say formal support from the United Nations is also very (55 percent) or somewhat (26 percent) important. More than half of those polled (51 percent) say that the United States should also win the support of U.S.-friendly Arab countries before taking any action in Iraq.
Sixty-three percent would support a U.S. attack on Iraq if it were limited to airstrikes. Seventy percent would support the use of Special Forces units or covert commando operations to capture Saddam Hussein or to work with local Iraqi anti-Saddam forces, and 69 percent would like to organize an international coalition to force Saddam from power. Fewer than half of those polled (49 percent) would support sending large numbers U.S. ground troops into Iraq; 45 percent would not support the use of ground forces (6 percent are not sure). While more than two thirds of Americans (68 percent) approve of Bush’s efforts to fight terrorism abroad, and 72 percent support his antiterrorism policies at home, those numbers have slipped since earlier this year-down from 86 percent and 82 percent respectively in late January. Fewer than half (48 percent) of Americans polled approve of the way Bush is handling the economy. And just 49 percent approve of his tax policies.
Americans appear to be more focused on economic problems at home than on the threat of terrorism. Sixty-three percent of Americans say they are more concerned about the economy and the job situation than about the threat of future acts of terrorism; 19 percent are more concerned about another attack and 10 percent are equally concerned about both.
On the eve of the first anniversary of the September 11 terror attacks, most Americans remain relatively confident in law enforcement’s ability to protect the average person from terrorism. Sixty percent of Americans say they are very (13 percent) or somewhat (47 percent) confident that U.S. intelligence and law-enforcement agencies will be able to prevent future large-scale terrorist attacks in the United States.
But two thirds of those polled say it is either very (18 percent) or somewhat (48 percent) likely that more terrorist attacks will be carried out against major U.S. cities, buildings or landmarks between now and the end of 2002. If there is another attack, one third of those polled say it will most likely involve chemical or biological weapons, while 26 percent say conventional explosives (like a bomb) will more likely be the weapon of choice. That’s a reversal from two months ago when one third thought a bomb would be most likely used and 27 percent thought chemical or biological weapons would be used.
While the September 11 attacks have left many Americans worried about future terrorist threats, 42 percent say they don’t feel any less safe than they did before the attacks-an increase from 32 percent early last October, when nearly two thirds of those polled felt less safe to some degree. Three quarters of those polled say they also feel more patriotic since the attacks, and 56 percent say they are spending more time with their families.
title: “Raising A Red Flag” ShowToc: true date: “2023-01-01” author: “Vanessa Lynch”
Dean still is, with consequences that are rippling through the race. In a three-day online plebiscite among his e-mail list of 500,000 supporters (most harvested initially on the Internet), he won overwhelming approval for rejecting the federal-financing system. That, in turn, will allow him to raise as much as he can, and to spend as much as he wants trying to snuff out his Democratic rivals early next year.
The possibility that Dean could do so is leading some nondigital powers that be–labor-union chieftains–to overlook the doctor’s penchant for aiming shots at his own foot, the most recent being his condescending description of Southern, working-class white men as “guys with Confederate flags in their pickup trucks.” The resulting controversy didn’t stop two powerful unions–Service Employees and State, County and Municipal Employees–from putting aside their own rivalry and preparing a joint endorsement of Dean. “They see all that money coming in,” a Gephardt aide glumly concluded.
Indeed, within Dean World, attacks on the candidate tend to be seen as proof of his manifest destiny. When Tim Russert roasted Dean on “Meet the Press,” Web traffic and donations skyrocketed. Last week’s scorching on the flag issue produced a similar result, Trippi claimed. “We had our best two days so far this quarter,” he said. Now the campaign is using its Web roster to select and deploy thousands of volunteers who will flood into Iowa, New Hampshire and other states. Recruiting questionnaires ask about subjects ranging from issue preferences to whether a nonsmoking volunteer would live in the home of a smoker.
Not that Dean is home free. Sen. John Kerry, his main challenger in New Hampshire, may follow Dean’s lead and abandon state spending limits–possibly tapping his wife’s fortune. “We’re not going to disarm unilaterally,” an aide said. Other candidates may decide to ignore the rules. Dean’s Confederate-flag remark may give Edwards or Clark an opening in South Carolina. Clark has his own momentum on the Web, running second in the Alexa rankings, and though he trails badly in Iowa and New Hampshire, his viewer-friendly use of another technology–television–has kept him neck and neck with Dean in the new NEWSWEEK Poll. Gephardt remains well ahead in union endorsements, and is expected to win the backing of the crucial Auto Workers affiliates in Iowa, where he won the caucuses in 1988. Now he’s staking everything on another Iowa victory. “For Gephardt, it’s all about Iowa,” said Trippi, who, ironically, ran Gephardt’s campaign there 15 years ago. “He’s going to live there,” said Trippi. “We can’t, in a national campaign.” No matter how high you rank online, you eventually have to win in the real world.
