(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Few adults in the United States are satisfied with the way the legal system deals with individual rights and national security, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. Only 27 per cent of respondents believe the balance between both issues is about right.

Conversely, 32 per cent think the legal system worries too much about protecting individual rights, while a further 32 per cent believe it worries too much about protecting national security.

In December 2005, U.S. president George W. Bush defended a secret domestic electronic surveillance program that includes the wiretapping of the telephone calls and e-mails of Americans suspected of having terrorist ties. The president’s remarks came in response to media reports that, since 2002, Bush has authorized the National Security Agency (NSA) to operate this program without any judicial oversight.

In August 2007, the Protect America Act of 2007 was passed by the U.S. Congress. Bush expressed satisfaction with the outcome, saying, "When our intelligence professionals have the legal tools to gather information about the intentions of our enemies, America is safer. And when these same legal tools also protect the civil liberties of Americans, then we can have the confidence to know that we can preserve our freedoms while making America safer."

Last month, Illinois senator Barack Obama—the presumptive presidential nominee for the Democratic Party in this year’s U.S. election—discussed his views on the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), saying, "Given the legitimate threats we face, providing effective intelligence collection tools with appropriate safeguards is too important to delay."

Polling Data

Some people say that there is a natural tension between protecting individual rights and national security. In the United States today, does our legal system worry too much about protecting individual rights, too much about protecting national security, or is the balance about right?

Source: Rasmussen Reports
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 1,000 likely American voters, conducted on Jun. 17, 2008. Margin of error is 3 per cent.

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