Even as more voters than ever call for a withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan, optimism about America's longest-running war has increased slightly following the killing of Osama bin Laden. Praise for the U.S. military has risen, too.
Voters feel more strongly than ever that U.S. troops should be brought home from Afghanistan right away or a timetable should be set to bring them back within a year.
A majority of voters, for the first time, support an immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Afghanistan or the creation of a timetable to bring them all home within a year.
Even as President Obama insists that troop withdrawals will begin in July as scheduled, voter confidence in the course of the war in Afghanistan remains low.
Following President Obama’s surprise visit to Afghanistan, many Americans question what the military goals are in that war and think history will not look kindly on U.S. efforts there.
Voter confidence in the outcome of the War in Afghanistan has fallen to a new low.
As President Obama and his staff consider delaying the withdrawal date for U.S. troops in Afghanistan, voters remain pessimistic about the longest-lasting conflict in American history.
Twenty-seven percent (27%) of voters believe all U.S. troops should be brought home from Afghanistan immediately, a finding that has remained largely unchanged since last November.
Following a shake-up of the U.S. military leadership in Afghanistan last week, President Obama on Sunday defended his war strategy and insisted that Americans would assist Afghanistan “for a long time to come." But the president still plans on starting the process of removing troops from Afghanistan by July 2011.
Many of the Founding Fathers, including James Madison, the chief author of the U.S. Constitution, strongly advocated civilian control of the military to ensure a stable democracy.
A massive suicide bombing last week pushed the number of U.S. casualties in the war in Afghanistan over the 1,000 mark, and voter confidence in America’s handling of that war continues to fall.
Voters are slightly less optimistic about winning the war in Afghanistan despite a highly publicized, thus far successful U.S. offensive against Taliban forces now taking place there.
Following President Obama's speech outlining his new strategy, there was a bounce in optimism about the war in Afghanistan. But the bounce has ended and confidence has fallen again. Confidence has also fallen in the broader War on Terror.
Fifty percent (50%) of U.S. voters agree with President Obama that Afghanistan is a "just" war.
Sixty-two percent (62%) of U.S. voters think it will be harder for America to make progress in Afghanistan than it was in Iraq.
Voters are almost evenly divided over what is the more important goal in the ongoing war in Afghanistan, but most believe President Obama is looking to end the war as quickly as possible.
The good news for President Obama is that 53% of voters nationwide support his plan to send another 30,000 troops to Afghanistan. Nearly as many (47%) support his plan to begin withdrawing troops from that war-torn country in 18 months.
President Obama detailed his plan for winning – and ending – the war in Afghanistan in a long-awaited speech last night at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Eighty-nine percent (89%) of U.S. voters have been following recent news about Afghanistan, including 51% who say they’ve been following the news Very Closely.
The longer President Obama waits to make a decision on whether to send more troops to Afghanistan, the more voter support for that war appears to be ebbing away.
Voters aren’t brimming with confidence that the United States can win the war in Afghanistan, but, despite news reports of a worsening situation there, support for a continued U.S. military presence in the country is unchanged.
