CSPG: Upper Midwest Public Opinion Archive

University of Minnesota
Home \| Initiatives \| Events \| Elections \| Reports \| Public Opinion \| Blog Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs

Minnesota: War in Iraq

Assessment and Impact of Iraq War
Assessment of Victory In Iraq
Goal of Iraq War
Administration of Iraq War
Decision to Go to War in Iraq
Weapons Inspections
Deployment of Additional Troops to Iraq
Troop Withdrawal from Iraq
Effect of Iraq War on International Relations
Relationship of Iraq War to War on Terror
Prisoner Abuse Scandal
Saddam Hussein

Assessment and Impact of Iraq War

Prediction of Situation in Iraq in Six Months

Poll	Date	Better	Stay about the same	Worse	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	March 19, 2008	38%	30%	25%	7%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Over the next six months, will the situation in Iraq get better or worse?"

Assessment of War in Iraq

Poll	Date	Excellent	Good	Fair	Poor	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	November 1, 2006	6%	18%	25%	51%	0%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "How would you rate the way things are going in Iraq these days ... excellent, good, fair, or poor?"

Assessment of Outcome of War

Poll	Date	Optimistic	Pessimistic	No change	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	September 11-14, 2004	17%	34%	46%	3%	625 LV	± 4.0

1 "Think about how your feelings about the war in Iraq might have changed this spring and summer. Would you say that you are more optimistic about the outcome, more pessimistic about the outcome, or unchanged."

Effect of U.S. Intervention on Iraqi People

Poll	Date	Better	Worse	No change	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	September 11-14, 2004	50%	12%	27%	11%	625 LV	± 4.0
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	July 12-14, 2004	48%	11%	32%	9%	625 RV	± 4.0
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	May 24-26, 2004	47%	11%	36%	6%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Do you feel that U.S. intervention in Iraq will ultimately make things better in Iraq, make things worse, or result in no real change for most Iraqis?"

Assessment of Victory In Iraq

Poll	Date	US will win	US will lose	No opinion	Sample	MoE
SurveyUSA	July 13-15, 2007	27%	58%	15%	600	± 4.1

Goal of Iraq War

Winning the War vs. Getting the Troops Home

Poll	Date	Winning the war	Getting the troops home	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	June 11, 2008	35%	57%	8%	500 LV	± 4.5
Rasmussen²	May 22, 2008	36%	55%	8%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "When it comes to the situation in Iraq, which is the more important goal for the next president to accomplish during his first term...winning the war or getting the troops home?"

2 "John McCain recently gave a speech saying that – if he is elected President – the United States will win the War in Iraq during his first term in office. McCain also said that virtually all combat troops will be home from Iraq by the end of his first term in office. If you had to choose just one of those goals as the higher priority, would you rather see the United States win the War in Iraq or get the troops home from Iraq within four years?"

Administration of Iraq War

Federal Government War In Iraq Job Approval Rating

Poll	Date	Approve	Disapprove	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Humphrey Institute / MPR¹	January 18-27, 2008	29%	68%	3%	917	± 3.2

1 "Do you approve or disapprove of the way the federal government is handling the war in Iraq?"

Political Party Best Handling War In Iraq

Poll	Date	Republican	Democrat	Neither	Both	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Humphrey Institute / MPR¹	January 18-27, 2008	28%	46%	11%	3%	12%	917	± 3.2

1 "Do you think the Republican Party or the Democratic Party would do a better job handling the war in Iraq?"

Trust to Administer War in Iraq and National Security

Poll	Date	President Bush	Democrats in Congress	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	August 28, 2006	40%	48%	13%	500 LV	± 4.5
Rasmussen¹	February 20, 2006	46%	47%	7%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Who do you trust more when it comes to the situation in Iraq and national security - President Bush or Democrats in Congress?"

Decision to Go to War in Iraq

Decision to Go to War

Poll	Date	Right thing	Wrong thing	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Quinnipiac¹	September 14-21, 2008	36%	59%	6%	1,301 LV	± 2.7
Quinnipiac¹	July 14-22, 2008	37%	55%	8%	1,261 LV	± 2.8
Quinnipiac¹	June 17-24, 2008	31%	61%	8%	1,572 LV	± 2.5

1 "Do you think going to war with Iraq was the right thing for the United States to do or the wrong thing?"

Bush Administration Decision to Go to War

View on Iraq¹	April 29 – May 1, 2003	May 24-26, 2004	July 12-14, 2004	September 11-14, 2004	May 7-9, 2007
The Bush administration was right to fight the war in Iraq and is generally doing the right thing in rebuilding Iraq	54%	29%	29%	32%	14%
The Bush administration was right to fight the war in Iraq but didn't prepare adequately for the aftermath.	25%	41%	35%	33%	39%
The Bush administration was wrong to fight the war in Iraq.	18%	28%	34%	30%	45%
No opinion	3%	2%	2%	5%	2%
Poll	Pioneer Press / MPR	Pioneer Press / MPR	Pioneer Press / MPR	Pioneer Press / MPR	MPR
Sample	625 RV	625 RV	625 RV	625 LV	625 LV
MoE	± 4.0	± 4.0	± 4.0	± 4.0	± 4.0

1 "Which comes closer to your view ...?"

Bush Administration Misleading America

Poll	Date	Did	Did not	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	May 24-26, 2004	52%	41%	7%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Do you feel the Bush administration did or did not mislead the American people about the reasons for going to war in Iraq?"

Weapons Inspections

War Justified if No Weapons of Mass Destruction

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	April 29 – May 1, 2003	63%	30%	7%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "If U.S. forces in Iraq do not find weapons of mass destruction, do you feel the war in Iraq will still be justified, or not?"

U.S. Response to Iraqi Non-Compliance with U.N. Weapons Inspections

Course of action in Iraq¹	February 20-22, 1998
The United States should continue to pursue diplomatic efforts because a military solution would be more damaging than productive	31%
The United States should go further and take whatever military action is needed to remove Saddam Hussein from power	30%
The United States should take whatever military action is needed to force Saddam Hussein to let outsiders inspect Iraq's weapons programs	25%
The United States should pursue a strategy of limited air strikes but not commit any ground troops to the effort	10%
No opinion	4%
Poll	Pioneer Press / MPR
Sample	827 RV
MoE	± 3.5

1 "As you may know, the United States has been trying to get Saddam Hussein in Iraq to comply with a United Nations requirement for weapons inspections. Which of the following courses of action do you most agree with ...?"

Deployment of Additional Troops to Iraq

Poll	Date	Support	Oppose	No opinion	Sample	MoE
MPR¹	May 7-9, 2007	35%	56%	9%	625 LV	± 4.0

1 "Do you support or oppose President Bush's plan to send additional troops to Iraq?"

Troop Withdrawal from Iraq

Begin Troop Withdrawal by October 1, 2007

Poll	Date	Support	Oppose	No opinion	Sample	MoE
MPR¹	May 7-9, 2007	53%	39%	8%	625 LV	± 4.0

1 "Do you support or oppose the proposal to begin pulling U.S. troops out of Iraq by October 1, 2007?"

Complete Troop Withdrawal Within a Year

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Ramussen¹	October 4, 2006	44%	36%	20%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Should all American troops in Iraq be brought home within a year?"

Setting Timetable for Troop Withdrawal

Poll	Date	Should	Should not	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	September 18-20, 2006	55%	35%	10%	625 LV	± 4.0

1 "Do you feel the U.S. should or should not establish a timetable for the withdrawal of troops from Iraq?"

Expectation for Troop Withdrawal

Timetable for withdrawal¹	July 12-14, 2004
Immediately	11%
By the end of 2004	15%
By the end of 2005	25%
Five years from now	20%
U.S. troops will need to stay in Iraq indefinitely	17%
No opinion	12%
Sample	625 LV
MoE	± 4.0
Poll	Pioneer Press / MPR

1 "When do you think it is reasonable to expect U.S. troops to be out of Iraq?"

Setting Troop Withdrawal Date Undermines U.S. Efforts

Poll	Date	Agree	Disagree	No opinion	Sample	MoE
MPR¹	May 7-9, 2007	50%	41%	9%	625 LV	± 4.0

1 "Some have said that setting a specific date to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq would hand an advantage to the insurgents, lead to chaos, and undermine efforts to establish a democracy in Iraq. Do you agree or disagree?"

Troop Level in Iraq

Poll	Date	Increased	Decreased	In Between	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Humphrey Institute¹	June 21 – July 12, 2004	24%	51%	22%	4%	589 RV	± 4.0

1 "Which statement comes closest to your point of view or do you fall somewhere in between? We should increase U.S. troops in Iraq OR we should decrease U.S. troops in Iraq."

Troop Withdrawal vs. Democracy in Iraq

Poll	Date	Democracy in Iraq	Remove Troops	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen²	January 16, 2006	58%	38%	4%	500 LV	± 4.5
Rasmussen²	December 14, 2005	51%	40%	9%	500 LV	± 4.5
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	May 24-26, 2004	78%	17%	5%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Which of these two positions do you tend to more agree with? The main U.S. goal should be to stabilize Iraq and help it set up a functioning democracy, even if that takes a while, OR the main U.S. goal should be to remove its troops from Iraq, even if that leaves Iraq in chaos."

2 "Which is more important, getting American troops home as soon as possible or making sure that Iraq becomes a peaceful nation enjoying freedom and democracy?"

Effect of Iraq War on International Relations

Effect of Iraq War on U.S. World Standing

Poll	Date	Improve	Worse	No change	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	July 12-14, 2004	21%	36%	35%	8%	625 RV	± 4.0
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	May 24-26, 2004	16%	50%	27%	7%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Do you feel that U.S. intervention in Iraq will ultimately improve the United States' standing in the world, make it worse, or result in no real change?"

Effect of Iraqi Sovereignty on World Opinion of U.S.

Poll	Date	Better	Worse	No change	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	September 11-14, 2004	17%	20%	54%	9%	625 LV	± 4.0
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	July 12-14, 2004	20%	22%	53%	5%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "(Since the turnover in Iraq leaders / Since the turnover of the sovereignty to Iraq leaders) at the end of June, do you think world opinion of the United States has gotten better, gotten worse or stayed the same?"

Relationship of Iraq War to War on Terror

Iraq Central Front in War On Terror

Poll	Date	Yes	No	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Rasmussen¹	July 22, 2008	18%	59%	22%	500 LV	± 4.5

1 "Is Iraq the central front in the War on Terror?"

Iraq War Making U.S. Safer from Terrorism

Poll	Date	Will	Will not	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	May 24-26, 2004	35%	59%	6%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Do you feel that U.S. intervention in Iraq will or will not make Americans safer from terrorism?"

Al Qaeda Collaboration with Saddam Hussein

Poll	Date	Did	Did not	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	July 12-14, 2004	49%	33%	18%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Based on what you know, do you think the terrorist group Al Qaeda did or did not collaborate with Iraq when Saddam Hussein was in power?"

Prisoner Abuse Scandal

Attitude Towards Prisoner Abuse in Iraq

View on Prisoner Abuse	Agree	Disagree	No opinion
The recent disclosure of American soldiers' treatment of Iraqi prisoners doesn't bother me. It is an acceptable part of war.	24%	73%	3%
The recent disclosure of American soldiers' treatment of Iraqi prisoners is disturbing, but shouldn't deter us from continuing to pursue our mission.	80%	13%	7%
The recent disclosure of American soldiers' treatment of Iraqi prisoners is disturbing, and should cause us to seriously reconsider our continued involvement there.	28%	67%	5%
The recent disclosure of American soldiers' treatment of Iraqi prisoners is repugnant and we should end our involvement there immediately.	9%	84%	7%
Poll	Pioneer Press / MPR
Date	May 24-26, 2004
Sample	625 RV
MoE	± 4.0

Saddam Hussein

Turning Saddam Hussein Over to Iraqis for Trial

Poll	Date	Right	Wrong	No opinion	Sample	MoE
Pioneer Press / MPR¹	July 12-14, 2004	83%	8%	9%	625 RV	± 4.0

1 "Was it the right thing or the wrong thing for the United States to turn Saddam Hussein over to the Iraqis for trial?"