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President George W. Bush has all but declared victory in Iraq, and readers of BusinessWeek Online give him plenty credit for the success of the U.S. invasion. Even so, they're skeptical that his Administration ultimately will achieve many of its goals in Iraq. Those are among the major findings of our Apr. 25 Reader Survey.
Most striking were the responses of the 480 readers who participated in this survey to four questions we asked in an earlier poll, on Mar. 27 during the heat of the battle.
For instance, some 49% of those who responded this time felt that the planners of the war had done better or much better than expected, vs. the 18% who thought so in March. Some 64% thought the war went better or much than expected, vs. the 17% who thought it was headed that way a month or so ago.
SKEPTICAL ON WMD. This time around, a resounding 62% thought U.S. troops did better or much better than expected in battle, vs. the 34% who felt that way in March. And 69% thought Iraqi troops did worse or much worse than expected in battle, vs. the 8% who felt that way at a time when U.S. forces were seemingly having trouble quashing the resistance in southern Iraq.
On the question of whether the invasion will ultimately achieve its objectives, some opinions have changed over the past five weeks. Only some 39% of those in the recent survey think the U.S. will uncover any weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, down a bit from 42% in March. However, the percentage who think it's unlikely that such weapons will be found rose, from 40% to 49%.
Some 34% of those who responded think the Iraqi people will come to regard the U.S. as their liberator, up slightly from 30% who felt that way a month ago. A majority -- 58% -- still think it's somewhat or very unlikely that by toppling Saddam Hussein's regime the U.S. will have headed off terrorist attacks at home. That's nearly unchanged from March, when 60% of readers felt that way.
WORTH IT ALL? Readers are a bit more hopeful that the U.S. victory will lead to the spread of democracy in the Middle and Far East: Some 28% think so now, vs. 21% a month ago. But more than 61% still think that isn't likely.
In retrospect, 43% say they were personally committed to the goals of the war as articulated by the Bush Administration -- the same percentage as a month ago. The percentage of readers who weren't personally committed to those goals remained essentially unchanged, at 48%.
Responding to a new question, in the latest poll some 44% of readers said it's somewhat or very likely that the invasion of Iraq will prove to have been worth its cost in terms of money spent and lives lost on both sides. That compares with 48% who said that it's somewhat unlikely or not likely at all that the war will have been worth the cost.
About 13% of those who participated in the most recent poll live outside the U.S., with the remainder spread about equally across the country. Some 38% said they voted for Bush in the last election, vs. 31% who voted for Gore and 31% who said they didn't or couldn't vote in the 2000.
Here are the complete results of the survey, which as always is unscientific since anyone who wished to could participate. (For the results of our earlier poll, see "How's the War in Iraq Going?")
How would you say the war went, from the U.S. perspective?
Option
Total
%
Much better than expected
145
30.59 %
Better than expected
155
32.7 %
Neither better nor worse than expected
105
22.15 %
Not as well as expected
43
9.07 %
Not well at all
22
4.64 %
Don't know
4
0.84 %
How do you think U.S. troops did in battle?
Option
Total
%
Much better than expected
145
30.59 %
Better than expected
145
30.59 %
Neither better nor worse than expected
155
32.7 %
Worse than expected
19
4.01 %
Much worse than expected
8
1.69 %
Don't know
2
0.42 %
How do you think the Iraqi troops did in battle?
Option
Total
%
Much better than expected
14
2.96 %
Better than expected
39
8.25 %
Neither better nor worse than expected
88
18.6 %
Worse than expected
157
33.19 %
Much worse than expected
171
36.15 %
Don't know
4
0.85 %
How would you describe the performance of the war's planners (President Bush, Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, and the nation's top generals) in coming up with a good battle strategy?
Option
Total
%
Much better than expected
100
21.19 %
Better than expected
133
28.18 %
Neither better nor worse than expected
127
26.91 %
Worse than expected
56
11.86 %
Much worse than expected
46
9.75 %
Don't know
10
2.12 %
At this point, how likely do you think it is that the U.S. will uncover Iraqi weapons of mass destruction?
Option
Total
%
Very likely
104
21.99 %
Somewhat likely
79
16.7 %
As likely as not
56
11.84 %
Somewhat unlikely
79
16.7 %
Very unlikely
153
32.35 %
Don't know
2
0.42 %
At this point, how likely do you think it is that the Iraqi people regard the U.S. as their liberator?
Option
Total
%
Very likely
51
10.83 %
Somewhat likely
102
21.66 %
As likely as not
85
18.05 %
Somewhat unlikely
93
19.75 %
Very unlikely
139
29.51 %
Don't know
1
0.21 %
At this point, how likely do you think it is that by toppling Saddam Hussein's regime, the U.S. has headed off terrorist attacks at home?
Option
Total
%
Very likely
86
18.22 %
Somewhat likely
67
14.19 %
As likely as not
44
9.32 %
Somewhat unlikely
50
10.59 %
Very unlikely
221
46.82 %
Don't know
4
0.85 %
According to some theories, a U.S. victory in Iraq will pave the way for the spread or imposition of democracy throughout the Middle and Far East. At the moment, would you say that this is:
Option
Total
%
Very likely
32
6.77 %
Somewhat likely
98
20.72 %
Neither more nor less likely
52
10.99 %
Not very likely
121
25.58 %
Not likely at all
166
35.1 %
Don't know
4
0.85 %
How likely do you think it is that the U.S. victory in Iraq was worth its cost in terms of money spent and lives lost on both sides?
Option
Total
%
Very likely
145
30.53 %
Somewhat likely
64
13.47 %
Neither more nor less likely
30
6.32 %
Somewhat unlikely
53
11.16 %
Not likely at all
176
37.05 %
Don't know
7
1.47 %
In retrospect, how committed would you say you were personally to the goals of the war as articulated by the Bush Administration?
Option
Total
%
Very committed
139
29.2 %
Somewhat committed
64
13.45 %
As committed as not
38
7.98 %
Not very committed
54
11.34 %
Not committed at all
177
37.18 %
Don't know
4
0.84 %
Where do you live?
Option
Total
%
Northeast
108
22.78 %
Midwest
78
16.46 %
South
86
18.14 %
Southwest
41
8.65 %
West
98
20.68 %
Outside the U.S.
63
13.29 %
Who did you vote for in the last Presidential election?
Option
Total
%
Bush
174
37.74 %
Gore
145
31.45 %
Didn't/couldn't vote
142
30.8 %
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