Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

Politics

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    TV Combat Fatigue on the Rise

    Summary of Findings Wall-to-wall media reports on the war in Iraq have not resulted in significant improvement in the public’s view of the media’s coverage of this war compared with the first Persian Gulf conflict. However, there are signs that 24-7 televised images of war are taking an increasing psychological toll. In recent days, more […]

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    Public Confidence In War Effort Falters

    Introduction and Summary Over the past two days the American public has become much less confident that the war in Iraq is going well, but large majorities continue to support President Bush and the decision to go to war. Polling on March 23-24 finds significantly fewer Americans thinking the war is going very well compared […]

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    Different Faiths, Different Messages

    Introduction and Summary Americans Hearing about Iraq from the Pulpit, but Religious Faith Not Defining Opinions Most American churchgoers are hearing about the issue of war with Iraq at their places of worship. But most say their ministers are not taking a position for or against the war, and relatively few people say their own […]

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    America’s Image Further Erodes, Europeans Want Weaker Ties

    Introduction and Summary Anti-war sentiment and disapproval of President Bush’s international policies continue to erode America’s image among the publics of its allies. U.S. favorability ratings have plummeted in the past six months in countries actively opposing war ­ France, Germany and Russia ­ as well as in countries that are part of the “coalition […]

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    Tax Plan Fails to Connect, Bush’s Economic Ratings Sag

    Introduction and Summary President Bush’s tax-cut plan is getting a tepid reception from the public and has failed to stem a steady erosion of his ratings on the economy. Barely four-in-ten Americans (43%) approve of his handling of the economy, while 48% disapprove. This marks the first time in Bush’s presidency a Pew survey has […]

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    U.S. Needs More International Backing

    Introduction and Summary A solid 66% majority of Americans favor the use of military force against Iraq, as long as the U.S. has sufficient backing for military action from major allies. But there is a growing belief that the U.S. does not yet have enough international support to conduct the war following the Feb. 14 […]

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    Powell Reversed the Trend but not the Tenor of Public Opinion

    The American public reacted very favorably to Secretary of State Colin Powell’s presentation to the U.N. Security Council. The flurry of polling conducted over the past week indicates that he made convincing points to the American public about the dangers posed by Saddam’s Hussein’s regime. Powell and President Bush, in his State of the Union […]

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    Confidence in Country’s Course at Lowest Ebb Since Bush Took Office

    Summary of Findings Confidence in the state of the nation took a dramatic plunge over the course of January. A national survey of 1,000 Americans conducted Jan. 22-29 finds just 34% of the public satisfied and 58% dissatisfied with the way things are going in the country. The survey, largely completed before President Bush’s Jan. […]

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    Bush Targets Top Global Problem – AIDS

    With his decision to dramatically increase U.S. overseas spending on the AIDS epidemic, President Bush is addressing a crisis that dominates the concerns of people around the world. The spread of AIDS and other infectious diseases is not just a major crisis in Africa, where the toll from AIDS has been highest. Majorities in 31 […]