In the wake of reports that the NSA has been listening to phone calls of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and other heads of state, a 56% majority of Americans say it is unacceptable for the U.S. to monitor the phones of allied leaders, while 36% say the practice is acceptable.
The historic moment may not have come as a surprise to many. Twenty years ago, about half of Americans (54%) thought the chances were good that we would have a black president by now, according to a 1993 Gallup/CNN/USA Today survey of U.S. adults, while 45% thought the chances were slim.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said last week he planned to bring the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) to the Senate floor. The measure has been advocated by the LGBT community, 57% of whom who say that equal employment rights should be a "top priority."
The U.S. Supreme Court will revisit the issue of legislative prayer when it hears oral arguments on Nov. 6 in Town of Greece v. Galloway, a case involving a challenge to a municipality’s practice of beginning each town board meeting with an invocation.
Americans believe that the National Security Agency may have gone too far in spying on U.S. allies. They also think that the NSA has intruded on personal privacy in scooping up massive amounts of phone calls and emails, but don't expect to see citizens taking to the streets.
While the American public increasingly has been looking inward after years of economic stress at home and a decade of wars abroad, they have a keen awareness of the challenges posed to the U.S. by China in the superpower competition between the two countries.
While the American public increasingly has been looking inward after years of economic stress at home and a decade of wars abroad, they have a keen awareness of the challenges posed to the U.S. by China in the superpower competition between the two countries.