GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- Most Americans express optimism about the war on terrorism and appear willing to see a substantial widening of the effort to other countries, according to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, conducted Jan. 11-14. But Americans are divided over whether it is necessary to capture or kill Osama bin Laden for the effort to be considered successful.
The poll shows that more than three-quarters of Americans, 77%, feel either "very" (36%) or "somewhat" (41%) optimistic about the war on terrorism, while a total of 20% feel pessimistic -- 13% somewhat, and 7% very, pessimistic.
In general, do you feel very optimistic, somewhat optimistic, somewhat pessimistic, or very pessimistic about -- ?
The war on terrorism
|
Very optimistic |
Somewhat optimistic |
Somewhat pessimistic |
Very pessimistic |
No |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 |
36% |
41 |
13 |
7 |
3 |
If Osama bin Laden is not killed or captured, however, just 44% of Americans will consider the U.S. accomplishments in Afghanistan to be a success, while 50% will not. If bin Laden is discovered in a country outside of Afghanistan and the government of that country is either unable or unwilling to capture him, 65% of Americans would support the use of military force over non-military measures to get bin Laden. Only about three in 10 think the United States should rely on non-military measures in this situation.
Which comes closer to your view -- [ROTATED: the U.S. accomplishments in Afghanistan will be a success even if Osama bin Laden is not captured, (or) the U.S. accomplishments in Afghanistan will not be a success until Osama bin Laden is captured]?
|
|
|
BOTH/NEITHER (vol.) |
No |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 |
44% |
50 |
4 |
2 |
|
2001 Nov 26-27 |
41% |
55 |
2 |
2 |
|
(vol.) Volunteered response |
||||
Suppose Osama bin Laden is discovered in a country outside of Afghanistan and the government of that country says it is unable to capture him. Do you think the U.S. should rely on military force -- or non-military measures -- to try to bring bin Laden to justice?
BASED ON -- 527 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM A; ±5 PCT. PTS.
|
|
Non-military measures |
DO NOTHING |
No |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 |
65% |
28 |
1 |
6 |
Suppose Osama bin Laden is discovered in a country outside of Afghanistan and the government of that country allows him to stay in that country and refuses to try to capture him. Do you think the U.S. should rely on military force -- or non-military measures -- to try to bring bin Laden to justice?
BASED ON -- 481 -- NATIONAL ADULTS IN FORM B; ±5 PCT. PTS.
|
|
Non-military measures |
DO NOTHING |
No |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 |
65% |
32 |
0 |
3 |
|
(vol.) Volunteered response |
||||
High levels of optimism about the war on terrorism are found among all groups of Americans, although there are some differences by age, gender and party affiliation. Men are more likely to express optimism than women are, by 81% to 73%. Republicans are also more likely to be optimistic (84%) than are independents and Democrats (69% and 70%, respectively). Only 65% of Americans aged 65 and older are optimistic, compared with an average of about 80% among younger Americans.
Whether it is necessary to capture or kill Osama bin Laden for U.S. efforts to be considered successful is also highly related to age, gender and party affiliation. Majorities of younger Americans (under 50), women and Democrats all say that if bin Laden is not captured or killed, U.S. efforts will not be considered successful. By contrast, older Americans, men and Republicans are all about evenly divided on the issue.
Widespread Support for Expanding Military Efforts
Given the widespread optimism about the war on terrorism, and also the strong commitment the public has shown to winning the war, it is not surprising that most Americans appear quite willing to see U.S. military operations expanded to other countries -- to include Iraq, Iran, Somalia and the Philippines.
If the U.S. government decided to take military action in Iraq, more than three-quarters of all Americans, 77%, say they would favor that action, while just 17% would be opposed. Also, by 71% to 23%, Americans would favor the government's decision to take military action in Iran. The margin of support for military action in Somalia is a bit smaller, though still substantial: 62% in favor, 26% opposed.
| If the U.S. government decides to take military action in the following countries, would you favor or oppose it? |
 |
| Jan. 11-14, 2002 |
Eighty-one percent of Americans say they approve of the U.S. decision to send a small number of military advisors to the Philippines to help train that country's army to fight Muslim terrorists. And if the United States sent 1,000 American troops to the Philippines to join that country's army in combat, 70% of Americans say they would be in favor.
As you may know, the U.S. has sent a small number of military advisors to the Philippines to help train that country's army to fight Muslim terrorists. Do you approve or disapprove of this decision?
|
Approve |
Disapprove |
No opinion |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 |
81% |
15 |
4 |
If the U.S. sent 1,000 American troops to the Philippines to join that country's army in combat situations against Muslim terrorists, would you favor or oppose this?
|
Favor |
Oppose |
No opinion |
|
|
2002 Jan 11-14 |
70% |
26 |
4 |
While there are gender and partisan differences, the poll shows majority support among all the subgroups. In general, Republicans support military action in each of the four areas by about 10-14 percentage points more than Democrats. Men support military action in Somalia by 16 percentage points more than women (70% vs. 54%), and in Iraq, by 11 points more than women (83% vs. 72%). However, men are only a few percentage points more likely to support military action in Iran and the Philippines, with about seven in 10 women and men in favor.
Survey Methods
The current results reported here are based on telephone interviews with a randomly selected national sample of 1,008 adults, 18 years and older, conducted Jan. 11-14, 2002. For results based on the total sample of national adults, one can say with 95% confidence that the margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points.
