Bush going down hard
Poll: Most Americans Think Iraq War Not Worth Fighting
Over Half Think Rumsfeld Should be Replaced
By Christopher MusteWashington Post Staff WriterMonday, December 20, 2004; 5:01 PM
Most Americans now believe the war with Iraq was not worth fighting and more than half want to fire embattled Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the chief architect of that conflict, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.
The survey found that 56 percent of the country now believes that the cost of the conflict in Iraq outweighs the benefits, while 42 percent disagreed. It marked the first time since the war began that a clear majority of Americans have judged the war to have been a mistake.
Barely a third of the country approves of the job that Rumsfeld is doing as defense secretary, and 52 percent said President Bush should sack Rumsfeld, a view shared by a big majority of Democrats and political independents.
Still, nearly six in 10 -- 58 percent -- said the United States should keep its military forces in Iraq rather than withdraw them, a proportion that has not changed in seven months.
The political fallout over the continuing bloody chaos in Iraq clearly is taking its toll on President Bush, who today strongly defended Rumsfeld in a press conference. Bush's overall job approval stood at 48 percent while 49 percent disapproved of his performance as president. Nearly six in 10 -- 57 percent -- say they disapprove of the way the president has handled the situation in Iraq.
Six in 10 Americans also say they believe that next month's presidential elections in Iraq should be held as scheduled but expressed broad pessimism about the outcome. A 54 percent majority said they doubted that the elections will be honest and the votes counted accurately. And an identical proportion said they were not confident that the voting will produce a stable government that will rule Iraq effectively.
A total of 1,004 randomly selected Americans were interviewed Dec. 16 to 19. Margin of sampling error for the overall results is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Over Half Think Rumsfeld Should be Replaced
By Christopher MusteWashington Post Staff WriterMonday, December 20, 2004; 5:01 PM
Most Americans now believe the war with Iraq was not worth fighting and more than half want to fire embattled Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the chief architect of that conflict, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll.
The survey found that 56 percent of the country now believes that the cost of the conflict in Iraq outweighs the benefits, while 42 percent disagreed. It marked the first time since the war began that a clear majority of Americans have judged the war to have been a mistake.
Barely a third of the country approves of the job that Rumsfeld is doing as defense secretary, and 52 percent said President Bush should sack Rumsfeld, a view shared by a big majority of Democrats and political independents.
Still, nearly six in 10 -- 58 percent -- said the United States should keep its military forces in Iraq rather than withdraw them, a proportion that has not changed in seven months.
The political fallout over the continuing bloody chaos in Iraq clearly is taking its toll on President Bush, who today strongly defended Rumsfeld in a press conference. Bush's overall job approval stood at 48 percent while 49 percent disapproved of his performance as president. Nearly six in 10 -- 57 percent -- say they disapprove of the way the president has handled the situation in Iraq.
Six in 10 Americans also say they believe that next month's presidential elections in Iraq should be held as scheduled but expressed broad pessimism about the outcome. A 54 percent majority said they doubted that the elections will be honest and the votes counted accurately. And an identical proportion said they were not confident that the voting will produce a stable government that will rule Iraq effectively.
A total of 1,004 randomly selected Americans were interviewed Dec. 16 to 19. Margin of sampling error for the overall results is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
posted by gubermintcheez | 5:03 PM
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