WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Americans are divided along party lines on U.S. military action against Iran, according to polls conducted since the war began, with most polls showing opposition is higher than support.<\/p>\n
Polls suggest that many Americans are worried the military action is making the U.S. \u201cless safe,\u201d even as they see Iran as a threat to U.S. security. There are also warning signs for President Donald Trump as he confronts the possibility of a prolonged conflict that could come with significant\u00a0economic turmoil. Trump gave\u00a0conflicting messages on Monday\u00a0about the war\u2019s timeline, suggesting\u00a0it could be near its end\u00a0while also threatening additional force against Iran if the country disrupted the global flow of oil.<\/p>\n
Fluctuating oil prices may already be alarming voters. Polls conducted over the weekend found a large majority of Americans are worried about the war causing oil and gasoline prices to rise. The vast majority expect the U.S. action against Iran will last at least \u201cmonths,\u201d if not longer.<\/p>\n
Republicans are largely behind the president, a Republican, the polls show, but there are indications that they are wary of any response that would lead to U.S. troops on the ground in Iran. And after Trump campaigned on\u00a0the pledge of putting \u201cAmerica first\u201d\u00a0and\u00a0ending U.S. involvement in \u201cforever wars,\u201d\u00a0the Iran conflict could become a particular point of friction.<\/p>\n
About half of registered voters \u2014 53% \u2014 oppose U.S. military action against Iran, according to\u00a0a new Quinnipiac Poll\u00a0conducted over the weekend. Only 4 in 10 support it, and about 1 in 10 are uncertain. A\u00a0new Ipsos poll also found more disapprove than approve of the strikes.<\/p>\n
That’s similar to the results of text message snap polls from\u00a0The Washington Post\u00a0and\u00a0CNN, both conducted shortly after the joint U.S.-Israel attacks began, which also indicated that more Americans rejected the military action than embraced it.<\/p>\n
A\u00a0recent Fox News poll\u00a0found opinions more evenly divided: Half of registered voters approved of the U.S. military action, while half disapproved.<\/p>\n
Several of the recent polls show a majority of Americans believe the Trump administration has not provided a clear explanation of the reasons behind the military strikes, and there are some divisions about whether Iran truly posed an \u201cimminent and direct threat\u201d to the United States, as the White House has said.<\/p>\n
Most voters in the Quinnipiac poll \u2014 55% \u2014 said they did not believe Iran posed an \u201cimminent military threat\u201d to the U.S. before the current military action. On the other hand, about 6 in 10 registered voters in the Fox News poll said Iran poses a \u201creal national security threat,\u201d and\u00a0a recent AP-NORC poll found\u00a0about half of U.S. adults were highly concerned that Iran\u2019s nuclear program posed a direct threat to the U.S.<\/p>\n
As oil prices oscillate, the vast majority of voters are \u201cvery\u201d or \u201csomewhat\u201d\u00a0concerned about oil and gasoline prices rising in the U.S., according to the Quinnipiac poll. Only about one-quarter of voters are \u201cnot so concerned\u201d or \u201cnot concerned at all.\u201d<\/p>\n
The highest levels of concern are driven by Democrats and independents, but about half of Republicans are also at least somewhat concerned about the war increasing gas prices.<\/p>\n
About two-thirds of Americans expect U.S. gas prices will \u201cget worse\u201d over the next year as a result of the U.S. military action, according to the Ipsos poll conducted March 6-9. Republicans were more likely to say gas prices would worsen than improve as a result of the war: 44% said they would get worse, while 26% expected they would improve. About 2 in 10 thought they would remain the same. Democrats and independents overwhelmingly expect gas prices will worsen.<\/p>\n
On Monday, Trump said the U.S. would take\u00a0further action against Iran\u00a0if they made any attempt to stop\u00a0the global oil supply.<\/p>\n
As the Iran war spreads into the Middle East, many Americans also worry Trump’s military decisions have made the U.S. less safe.<\/p>\n
About half of voters in both the Quinnipiac and Fox News polls said the U.S. military action in Iran makes the U.S. \u201cless safe,\u201d while only about 3 in 10 in each poll said it made the country safer. The CNN poll found about half of U.S. adults thought the strikes would make Iran \u201cmore of a threat\u201d to the U.S., while only about 3 in 10 thought it would lessen the danger.<\/p>\n
About 6 in 10 U.S. adults said they trusted Trump \u201cnot much\u201d or \u201cnot at all\u201d to make the right decisions about the U.S. use of force in Iran, according to the CNN poll. Republicans expressed more trust in the president than Democrats or independents.<\/p>\n
An\u00a0AP-NORC poll conducted before the strikes\u00a0similarly found that 56% of U.S. adults trusted Trump \u201conly a little\u201d or \u201cnot at all\u201d to make the right decisions about the use of military force abroad.<\/p>\n
Most voters are concerned about a possible expansion in the war\u2019s scope.<\/p>\n
About three-quarters of voters oppose the idea of sending ground troops into Iran, according to the Quinnipiac poll that was conducted after the deaths of six U.S. service members were announced. The death of a\u00a0seventh service member was reported\u00a0later.<\/p>\n
The Trump administration has acknowledged the likelihood of American casualties, and has not ruled out sending American soldiers to Iran. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said last week that it was \u201cfoolishness\u201d to\u00a0expect U.S. officials to say publicly\u00a0\u201chere\u2019s exactly how far we\u2019ll go.\u201d<\/p>\n
Only about 2 in 10 in the Quinnipiac poll supported sending troops to Iran. Even among Republican voters, the poll found more oppose than support sending ground troops, 52% to 37%.<\/p>\n
The new Ipsos poll found bipartisan concern that the U.S. military action would risk the lives of American military personnel. About 9 in 10 U.S. adults are \u201cvery\u201d or \u201csomewhat\u201d concerned about this, including 86% or Republicans and 93% of Democrats.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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