The latest Washington Post poll shows that there’s very little support for a withdrawal from Iraq despite concerns about the direction of the war.
The survey found that only one in eight Americans currently favors an immediate pullout of U.S. forces, while a solid majority continues to agree with Bush that the United States must remain in Iraq until civil order is restored — a goal that most of those surveyed acknowledge is, at best, several years away.
Amid broad skepticism about Bush’s credibility and whether the war was worth the cost, there were some encouraging signs for the president. A narrow majority — 52 percent — believes that the war has contributed to the long-term security of the United States, a five-point increase from earlier this month.
…Despite public misgivings about elements of the policy, there remains an underlying reservoir of support for the war and continued unwillingness by the public to abandon Iraqis to their fate. Despite the almost daily suicide bombings and mounting casualty rates, a majority of Americans — 53 percent — now say they are optimistic about the situation in Iraq, up seven points from December.
The poll sends some mixed messages. However, it is clear that a majority of the American people understand the stakes in Iraq. President Bush has allowed his critics in the media to control the message, and tonight’s speech at Fort Bragg may be one of the most important of his Presidency. Now he has to remind the country of why we’re fighting, what we’re fighting against, and why Iraq is crucial to that fight.
Iraq has become the centerpiece in this war. If we hand al-Qaeda a victory in Iraq, it would be the most destructive foreign policy decision in American history. We cannot allow that to happen. President Bush has the support of this nation in calling for our military to finish the job, but he still risks losing the support of the American people. The war stands at a major turning point – we will either win or lose depending on how effectively we can restore order to Iraq. We’re not alone, we’re in this fight with our Iraqi allies as well as dozens of countries from across the globe. The stakes are high, and the risks of failure massive. Thankfully, the American people understand this and are willing to finish the job we started.
The same moronic uber-nationalism that propelled 70% of Americans to support rushing into this war in the first place back in 2003 is still in play. Even though a solid majority now concedes that waging war against Iraq was a bonehead play, we still believe indefinite continuity of that mistake is the right course of action. This is why we need to revive the military draft. Cowardly chickenhawks and indifferent soccer moms would have never swallowed Bush’s faux prognosis for war in the first place and would definitely insist on pulling out today if it was more than just the children of inner-city minorities and red-state hillbillies whose blood was being spilled onto the streets of Baghdad and Fallujah.
Americans are being told by this administration that conservation and public sacrifice are both bad. No matter how good or bad the situation in Iraq is, it’s business as usual in America’s suburbs, where our biggest concerns are “oppressive” tax rates, Ten Commandments statues being removed from courthouses, and second-hand cigarette smoke. It’s easy for seven out of eight Americans to fake a brave face and continue to send other people’s children into harm’s way so long the same seven out of eight have no personal stake in the eventual outcome.
Your comment reveals your lack of backbone. Your silly comments paint you as one of the many lefties that left your last original idea in the toilet. This war, if you listen to the reports from Michael Yon, Blackfive, Hugh Hewwitt, etc. is progressing far better than you indicate. It is a war. President Bush is make school boy errors in not seizing on this war and DRIVING the message. It is ridiculous how those in charge lack the killer instinct to put the lefties in their appropriate place READ: out of power, and cheap entertainment at cocktail parties. Get a clue asshat.
Hugh Hewitt thought George Bush won the first debate against John Kerry (“It’s hard work!!!!!!” x 13), so forgive me if he’s not very high on my list of armchair warriors to take advice from on the current state of affairs in Iraq.