[Fresh Ink] [US] Majority Say Afghan War Not Worth Fighting

[Richard Menec]

<http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/08/19/AR2009081903066.html?hpid=topnews>

Majority in Post-ABC Poll Say Afghan War Not Worth Fighting

Few Express Confidence in Lasting Results From Thursday's Election

By Jennifer Agiesta and Jon Cohen

August 19, 2009, Washington Post

A majority of Americans now see the war in Afghanistan as not worth fighting 
and just a quarter say more U.S. troops should be sent to the country, 
according to a new Washington Post- ABC News poll.

Most have confidence in the ability of the United States to meet its primary 
goals -- defeating the Taliban, facilitating effective economic development 
and molding an honest and effective Afghan government -- but very few say 
Thursday's elections there are likely to produce such a government.

When it comes to the baseline question, 42 percent of Americans say the U.S. 
is winning in Afghanistan; about as many, 36 percent, say it is losing the 
fight.

The new poll comes amid widespread speculation that the top U.S. commander 
in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, will request more troops for his 
stepped-up effort to root the Taliban from Afghan towns and villages. That 
is a position that gets the backing of 24 percent of those polled, while 
nearly twice as many, 45 percent, want to decrease the number of military 
forces there. (Most of the remainder say to keep the level about the same.)

In January, before President Obama authorized sending an additional 17,000 
troops to the country, public sentiment tilted more strongly toward a troop 
increase.

Should President Obama embrace his general's call for even more U.S. 
military forces, he risks alienating some of his staunchest supporters While 
60 percent of all Americans approve of how Obama has handled the situation 
in Afghanistan, his ratings among liberals have slipped and majorities of 
liberals and Democrats alike now, for the first time, solidly oppose the war 
and are calling for a reduction in troops.

Overall, seven in 10 Democrats say the war has not been worth its costs, and 
fewer than one in five support an increase in troop levels. Nearly 
two-thirds of the most committed Democrats now feel "strongly" that the war 
was not worth fighting. Among moderate and conservative Democrats, a slim 
majority say the United States is losing in Afghanistan.

Republicans (70 percent say it is worth fighting) and conservatives (58 
percent) remain the war's strongest backers, and the issue provides a rare 
point of GOP support for Obama's policies. A narrow majority of 
conservatives approve of Obama's handling of the war (52 percent), as do 
more than four in 10 Republicans (43 percent).

Among all adults, 51 percent now say the war is not worth fighting, up six 
points since last month and four points above the previous high, reached in 
February. Less than half, 47 percent, say the war is worth its costs. Those 
strongly opposed (41 percent) outweigh strong proponents (31 percent).

Opposition to the Iraq war reached similar levels in the summer of 2004 and 
deteriorated further, through the 2006 midterm elections, becoming issue No. 
1 in many congressional races that year.

By the time support for the Iraq war had fallen below 50 percent, 
disapproval of President George W. Bush's handling of it had climbed to 55 
percent, in contrast to Obama's solid overall approval on dealing with 
Afghanistan.

But there are warning signs for the president.

Among liberals, his rating on handling the war, which he calls one of 
"necessity," has fallen swiftly, with strong approval cratering by 20 
points. Nearly two- thirds of liberals stand against a troop increase, as do 
about six in 10 Democrats.

On the GOP side, views are more evenly distributed, as Republicans divide 
about equally in support of an increase, a decrease and no change to troop 
levels.

Partisan divisions on the handling of the war itself are tempered when it 
comes to faith in the ability of the United States and its allies to get the 
job done in Afghanistan. Broad majorities across party lines say they are 
confident the U.S. will defeat the Taliban and succeed in spurring economic 
development.

Independents express slightly less confidence on these issues, and less than 
half of independents (46 percent) say they are confident that the United 
States can encourage an honest and effective Afghan government. Overall, 55 
percent are confident that the United States could help establish an honest 
and effective government.

Far fewer, 34 percent, say the country's national election will result in an 
effective government, with just 3 percent "very confident."

Beyond ideological and partisan divisions on the war, women have shifted 
against the war more sharply than men and are far more apt to say troop 
levels should be decreased (51 percent) than are men (38 percent). Nearly 
six in 10 women say the war was not worth fighting, up from just under half 
last month.

The Washington Post-ABC News poll was conducted by telephone Aug. 13-17 
among a random national sample of 1,001 adults including users of both 
conventional and cellular phones. Results from the full survey have a margin 
of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points; it is higher 
among subgroups.