US Public Skeptical of "Surge,"
72% Disapprove of Bush's Handling of Iraq
It isn't amazing that 61% of Americans think the US should never have invaded Iraq. [- Courtesy NYT/CBS.]
What is amazing is that 35% still think it was a good idea.
It isn't amazing that 76% (including 51% of Republicans) of Americans say that the increased US troop levels in Iraq have had no impact or are making things worse.
What is amazing is that 20% think that things have gotten significantly better.
It isn't amazing that 63% of Americans support a timetable for US withdrawal ending in 2008. What is amazing is that so many do not.
It isn't amazing that 13% want to cut off money for the Iraq War immediately, or that 69% want further funding to be tied to the meeting of specific benchmarks.
What is amazing is that %15 want the war funded with no conditions at all.
(By the way, that only 13% want to cut off all funding immediately goes a long way toward explaining the vote on the supplemental in Congress).
It isn't amazing that 72 percent of Americans disapprove of Bush's handling of Iraq.
What is amazing is that 23 percent approve. (Are these the horror movie fans in the Republican base?)
It isn't amazing that 65 percent disapprove of Bush's management of foreign policy.
What is amazing is that 25 percent approves. (They should be asked specifically of what they approve. The rest of us want to know.)
I won't say anything mean about the fall to a 38% favorability rating for the Republican Party. If I were a Republican, I'd want to impeach Cheney before it goes on down to zero. Given that a third of evangelicals voted Democrat in the last election, it is not impossible that the GOP will end up a minority taste for years to come.
Labels: Iraq
posted by Juan Cole @ 5/26/2007 12:23:00 AM
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4 Comments:
Professor Cole, I hope you are right about the Republicans becoming a minority party for years to come. That might become more likely if the Democrats actually had the courage to actually stop Bush's folly in its tracks. We need a strong alternative party with the courage of its convictions to get back on track and stay there. I'm not sure we have one.
The Republicans no longer care about the congressional seats. The Bush administration has with the help of Congress already shifted enough power to the Executive Branch that Congress is irrelevant, especially when the Judiciary and Justice Department have been compromised. At this point, the elections for President are the only elections that matter now. Given the election fraud in 2004 and 2000, and the AG scandal which is all about 2008 elections (see Greg Palasts site), there is not much doubt this country has seen their last Democratic President for many years to come.
I don't get it: 13% want an immediate cutoff, 15% want no conditions, and the rest prefer funding with timetable or benchmarks. How does this explain the vote? Equal (but small) numbers want cutoff or no conditions, so they vote for no conditions?
Plus, we have had four years of blank checks, and Americans voted for change in November. They should have kept sending the timetable bill back to Bush. Its what the people wanted. If Bush won't sign it and the troops run out of money, its on him.
There is a certain amount of unusual opinion in any situation that must be accepted as so much background noise. For a farfetched but telling example, consider the number of Americans who believe that the Apollo moon mission was a hoax.
That 30 percent of the population still supports Bush is remarkable, but should figures drop below 20 percent and certainly below 10 percent, the mindset of the remainder is one we should just throw up our hands and marvel.
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