76 percent of Americans believe war was the right thing to do

WASHINGTON (AFP) Apr 11, 2003
Seventy-six percent of Americans believe the United States made the right decision when it went to war with Iraq to bring down the government of Saddam Hussein and rid Baghdad of its suspected weapons of mass destruction, according to a new public opinion poll.

The survey by the Pew Research Center, which was made public Thursday, said the figure represented a six-percent increase since last Tuesday, the eve of the collapse of Iraqi regime.

But despite scenes of public jubilation in Baghdad broadcast by television networks, most Americans -- 69 percent -- continue to believe that it is too early to tell if the war has been won.

By a 51 percent to 42 percent margin, Americans believe that it is necessary to kill or capture Saddam Hussein in order to win the war, the poll showed.

At the same time, optimism about the outcome of the war is tempered by the prevailing view that the United States and its allies will face a tough job in stabilizing and rebuilding Iraq.

As many as 73 percent believe it will be a difficult job to install a stable democratic government in the country, according to the survey.

By a ratio of 62 percent to 31 percent, Americans believe the United Nations should play a significant role in post-war Iraq.

But the public is divided over the issue of who should have the most say in this process: 38 percent believe the United Nations should take the lead in establishing a stable government in Iraq, compared with 49 percent who either believe Washington and its allies should have the most say, or reject any UN role.

The poll also found that only 15 percent of respondents believe that using military force to remove dictators who threaten but have not attacked the United States is usually the right thing to do.

The survey, conducted April 8-9 among 809 Americans, had a margin of error of of plus or minus four percentage points.

SPACE.WIRE