September 17, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in the United States are upset at their country’s transformation since a devastating terrorist attack took place six years ago, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. 59 per cent of respondents think America has changed for the worse since 9/11.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in the United States are upset at their country’s transformation since a devastating terrorist attack took place six years ago, according to a poll by Rasmussen Reports. 59 per cent of respondents think America has changed for the worse since 9/11.

Al-Qaeda operatives hijacked and crashed four airplanes in the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001, killing nearly 3,000 people. In July 2004, the federal commission that investigated the events of 9/11 concluded that "none of the measures adopted by the U.S. government from 1998 to 2001 disturbed or even delayed the progress of the al-Qaeda plot" and pointed out government failures of "imagination, policy, capabilities, and management."

Afghanistan has been the main battleground in the war on terrorism. In October 2001, U.S. president George W. Bush ordered the invasion of Afghanistan, claiming that there would be "no distinction between the terrorists who committed these acts and those who harbour them." The conflict began after the Taliban regime refused to hand over Osama bin Laden, prime suspect in the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

In March 2003, the U.S. government launched the coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime in Iraq. Pre-war speeches by Bush mentioned specific chemical agents, such as mustard gas, sarin and VX nerve gas as banned substances allegedly secured by Iraq. State secretary Colin Powell assured the United Nations (UN) Security Council in February 2003 that Hussein possessed biological weapons.

The final report of the Iraq Survey Group—presented to the U.S. Congress on Sept. 30, 2004—concluded that Hussein’s regime did not possess chemical, biological or nuclear weapons, and had not implemented a significant program for their development. In June 2004, the federal commission that investigated the events of 9/11 stated that there had been "no collaborative relationship" between the deposed Iraqi regime and the al-Qaeda terrorist network in the planning and carrying out of the 9/11 attacks.

On Sept. 14, U.S. vice-president Dick Cheney linked 9/11 and the war in Iraq, saying, "The terrorists have been at war with the United States for a long time. And after 9/11 this nation made a decision: We are at war with them. This is a long-term commitment, not a passing issue. There will be no running, or relenting, until the problem has been dealt with—decisively, systematically, and permanently. (...) The al-Qaeda network that struck America is one of the elements now interested in destroying Iraq’s democracy—and Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants regard it as a critical front in their war against us."

Original Release from Rasmussen Reports

Polling Data

Has America changed for better or worse since the 9/11 terrorist attacks?

 

Better	21%
Worse	59%
No Change	10%

Source: Rasmussen Reports

Methodology: Telephone interviews with 800 likely American voters, conducted on Sept. 5 and Sept. 6, 2007. Margin of error is 3.5 per cent.