Fewer Americans Trust Bush on Iraq

September 19, 2005

(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in the United States are losing confidence in their president’s aptitude to make decisions connected with the coalition effort, according to a poll by the New York Times and CBS News. 63 per cent of respondents are uneasy about George W. Bush’s approach to the war in Iraq.

The survey shows a 17-point drop in confidence on the American president since a survey conducted days before the war began.

The coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime was launched in March 2003. At least 1,897 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and more than 14,300 troops have been injured.

On Sept. 16, Bush discussed the current state of affairs in Iraq, saying, "Clearly, Iraq is a struggling democracy. But one thing is for certain: the people have made their mind about what they want. They want democracy: 8.5 million Iraqis went to the polls, see, and they’ve got a constitution that’s been written. It wasn’t written under bayonet or under the barrel of a gun-it was written by people from different factions of the society that have come together."

Last month, Iraqi negotiators finalized the country’s new draft constitution. The 15 members of a Sunni Arab panel did not endorse the proposed body of law, which must be ratified in a nationwide referendum on Oct. 15.

Yesterday, Iraq’s National Assembly approved the constitution. Deputy speaker Hussain al-Shahristani said the document "is being submitted to the United Nations (UN) and will be presented to the Iraqi people soon. (...) There is no way there will be any changes now."

Polling Data

Do you have confidence in George W. Bush’s ability to make the right decisions about the war in Iraq, or are you uneasy about his approach?

Sept. 2005
Mar. 2003 (*)

Confident
35%
52%

Uneasy
63%
46%

Don’t know
2%
3%

(*) Varied Wording: Do you have confidence that George W. Bush will make the right decision about a possible war with Iraq, or are you uneasy about his approach?

Source: CBS News / The New York Times
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,167 American adults, conducted from Sept. 9 to Sept. 13, 2005. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/ind...