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Many Americans Would Urge Bush to Withdraw from Iraq
(Angus Reid Global Scan) - Many adults in the United States would advise their president to bring an end to the coalition effort, according to a poll by Gallup released by CNN and USA Today. 41 per cent of respondents say they would ask George W. Bush to withdraw the troops from Iraq if they could talk to him for 15 minutes.
The coalition effort against Saddam Hussein's regime was launched in March 2003. At least 1,879 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and more than 14,100 troops have been injured.
On Aug. 24 in Idaho, Bush ruled out removing American soldiers from Iraq, declaring, "An immediate withdrawal of our troops in Iraq, or the broader Middle East, as some have called for, would only embolden the terrorists and create a staging ground to launch more attacks against America and free nations. So long as I'm the president, we will stay, we will fight, and we will win the war on terror." 18 per cent of respondents would suggest Bush to finish what was started and be more aggressive, and seven per cent would commend him for a good job and urge him to continue with his actions.
Other responses included implementing an exit strategy, training Iraqis and eventually letting them run their own country, sending more troops, keeping the public informed, working with the United Nations (UN), and admitting to past mistakes.
Polling Data
If you could talk with U.S. president George W. Bush for 15 minutes about the situation in Iraq, what would you, personally, advise him to do?
Pull the troops out and come home / end it | 41% |
Finish what was started / be more aggressive | 18% |
Doing a good job / continue with your actions | 7% |
Come up with and execute a well-thought-out exit strategy | 6% |
Get them trained and let them run their own country | 6% |
Build up the military / send more troops | 4% |
Keep the public informed / be honest / explain actions | 3% |
Join in and work with the United Nations | 3% |
Admit to past mistakes / apologize | 3% |
Take care of our own problems | 1% |
Work with and improve advisory board | 1% |
Other | 6% |
Nothing | 16% |
No opinion | 8% |
Source: Gallup / CNN / USA Today
Methodology: Telephone interviews to 1,007 American adults, conducted from Aug. 22 to Aug. 25, 2005. Margin of error is 3 per cent.