International Issues

Support for U.S. military action against Iraq is weaker in the Hispanic population, particularly among the foreign born, than in the American population overall, according to a Pew Hispanic Center poll of Latino adults taken February 13 to 16, 2003. Several recent polls by news organizations show that 60 to 70 percent of the general public supports military action. In this survey 48 percent of Latinos said they support invading Iraq to remove Saddam Hussein from power and 43 percent are opposed. Among native-born Latinos support for a possible war is 52 percent, and among foreign-born Latinos support is 46 percent in the Pew Hispanic Center poll. Overall Latino views mirror those of the general public on whether Iraq poses an immediate threat to the United States although somewhat fewer Latinos see a long-term threat from Iraq compared to the findings of general population polls.

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 […]

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 […]

Polls Surprisingly Consistent

Summary of Findings A two-thirds majority of the public continues to express qualified support for the idea of using military force to end the rule of Saddam Hussein. But the Bush administration may face a major challenge in winning public support for the use of force if U.N. weapons inspections yield anything less than evidence […]

Summary of Findings Americans continue to hold more internationalist views than they did prior to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The public favors cooperation with the United Nations and taking into account the views of U.S. allies to a greater extent than in the 1990s. Most notably, there has been a decline in the percentage […]

Overview Global Gloom and Growing Anti-Americanism Despite an initial outpouring of public sympathy for America following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, discontent with the United States has grown around the world over the past two years. Images of the U.S. have been tarnished in all types of nations: among longtime NATO allies, in developing […]

Summary of Findings A growing number of Americans oppose military action in Iraq, amid widespread concern over the potential negative consequences of war. For the first time since the Iraq debate intensified this summer, a majority of Democrats oppose the use of force to remove Saddam Hussein from power. And while a 55% majority still […]

A Pew Research Center Note

Introduction and Summary A possible war with Iraq is an increasing concern of the American public. It has emerged as the national issue that people discuss most often with family and friends, and news interest in the Iraq debate rose dramatically in September. But as the midterm elections approach, it is the economy and other […]