Record Number In Survey Say Getting Involved
In Iraq Was Mistake
May 25, 2007
(CBS) As President Bush and Congress hammer out an Iraq war
funding bill, a CBS News/New York Times poll shows the number
of Americans who say the war is going badly has reached a new
high, rising 10 percent this month to 76 percent.
Nearly half of all Americans (47 percent) say the war is going
very badly, while just 20 percent say the recent U.S. troop
increase is making a positive difference.
Even a majority of Republicans, 52 percent, now say the war
is going at least somewhat badly – a 16-point increase
from the middle of April. Nine in 10 Democrats and eight in
10 Independents agree.
HOW IS THE WAR GOING?
Now
Well - 23%
Badly - 76%
4/2007
Well - 31%
Badly - 66%
Although Congress has backed down from attaching a timetable
for a U.S. troop withdrawal to the war funding bill, six in
10 Americans would like one. The public also favors setting
benchmarks the Iraqi government must meet as a condition for
future funding of the war something that Congress will include
in the pending legislation.
The poll also finds a record number of Americans say getting
involved in Iraq in the first place was a mistake. Only 35
percent say the U.S. did the right thing by invading Iraq,
while 61 percent say the U.S. should have stayed out.
DID U.S. DO THE RIGHT THING GOING TO WAR WITH IRAQ?
Now
Right thing - 35%
Should have stayed out - 61%
In addition, the poll finds Americans are more pessimistic
than ever about the overall direction in which the United States
is headed. Seventy-two percent, the highest number since the
CBS/NYT poll started asking the question in 1983, say the country
is on the wrong track, while 24 percent say it's headed in
the right direction.
DIRECTION OF THE COUNTRY
Wrong track - 72%
Right direction - 24%
President Bush's job approval rating in the poll is now at
30 percent, two points above its January low. Sixty-three percent
of Americans disapprove of the president's job performance.
Congress fares only a little better, with an approval rating
of 36 percent, and disapproval of 52 percent.
BUSH’S JOB APPROVAL RATING
Approve - 30%
Disapprove - 63%
APPROVAL OF CONGRESS
Approve - 36%
Disapprove - 52%
This poll was conducted among a random sample of 1,125 adults
nationwide, interviewed by telephone May 18-23, 2007. The error
due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could
be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups
is higher. An oversample of African Americans was also conducted
for this poll, for a total of 192 interviews among this group.
The results were then weighted in proportion to the racial
composition of the adult population in the U.S. Census. The
margin of error for African Americans is plus or minus 7 percentage
points.
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