Americans more pessimistic on Iraq
Published 9:00 pm Friday, December 8, 2006
WASHINGTON – Americans see no easy exit from Iraq: Just 9 percent expect the war to end in clear-cut victory, compared with 87 percent who expect some sort of compromise settlement, according to the latest AP-Ipsos poll.
Dissatisfaction with President Bush’s handling of Iraq has climbed to an all-time high of 71 percent, according to the survey, which was taken as a bipartisan commission was releasing its recommendations this week for a new course. Just 27 percent of Americans approved of Bush’s handling of Iraq, down from his previous low of 31 percent in November.
Pessimism about Iraq is mounting, according to the poll. About 63 percent of Americans said they don’t expect a stable, democratic government to be established, up from 54 percent who felt that way in June.
The pessimism was considerably higher among Democrats, with just 22 percent expecting a stable, democratic government, compared with half of all Republicans.
“Support is continuing to erode and there’s no particular reason to think it can be turned back,” said John Mueller, an Ohio State University political scientist and author of “War, Presidents and Public Opinion.” Mueller said that once people “drop off the bandwagon, it’s unlikely they’ll say, ‘I’m for it again.’ Once they’re off, they’re off.”
Even so, Americans are not necessarily intent on getting all U.S. troops out right away, the poll indicated. The survey found strong support for a two-year timetable if that’s what it takes to get U.S. troops out. Seventy-one percent said they would favor a two-year timeline from now until sometime in 2008. When people are asked instead about a six-month timeline for withdrawal, the number of those in favor drops to 60 percent.
The Iraq Study Group’s report said flatly that the administration’s approach was not working and recommended that the U.S. military accelerate a change in its main mission so that most combat troops can be withdrawn by spring 2008. House and Senate Democratic leaders have all signed on to a plan that the U.S. pull out some troops right away to put pressure on the Iraqis, but without a specific timetable.
