Six in 10 Say Bush Underestimated 9-11 Threat
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Six out of 10 Americans say the Bush administration underestimated the threat of terrorism prior to Sept. 11, 2001, and nearly two out of three are at least somewhat concerned Iraq could become another Vietnam, according to a Newsweek Poll released on Saturday.
The poll of 1,005 adults taken on Thursday and Friday also showed a 51 percent disapproval rating for President Bush's conduct of the war in Iraq, where violence has flared up in the last week amid calls by Muslim clerics for an uprising against the U.S.-led occupation.
Reflecting an erosion of confidence in Bush's leadership in the war on terror and his conduct of the Iraq war, Democratic challenger John Kerry was the choice of 50 percent of the respondents to become the next president in November in a one-to-one matchup with Bush.
Bush was the choice of just 43 percent in the matchup, his worst showing since Newsweek started pairing him against Kerry in its polling.
If independent candidate Ralph Nader is included, 46 percent still lean toward Kerry while 42 percent favor Bush and 4 percent lean toward Nader. Some 8 percent say they are still undecided.
The Bush White House did not receive the bulk of the blame for failing to anticipate the Sept. 11 attacks. A majority of respondents, 52 percent, say a lack of good intelligence from the FBI and CIA were primarily to blame.
Just 25 percent say the administration's lack of focus on al Qaeda, and an unwarranted focus on other security issues like Iraq and missile defense, were chiefly to blame.
While 57 percent still thought Washington made the right choice in invading Iraq, against 39 percent who say it was a mistake, 42 percent said the invasion has increased the risk of a major terrorist attack, with just 29 percent saying it had made America safer against such attacks.
Asked if Iraq could turn into another Vietnam, where the United States went to war in the 1960s and 1970s but failed to accomplish its goals, 40 percent said they were very concerned and 24 percent said they were somewhat concerned about the possibility.
Only 20 percent said they were not at all concerned.
The poll reflected a determination to stay the course, with 63 percent saying they would support an increase in the number of U.S. military personnel in Iraq if needed, while only 31 percent would oppose an increase.
Some 55 percent disapprove of the way Bush is handling the U.S. economy and 59 percent say they are dissatisfied with the way the country is going.
The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.
reuters.com
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