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Modest Majority Believes Invasion of Iraq Has Not Helped Protect U.S.
ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- A new Harris Poll brings a number of important, but mixed, messages to the White House and to Senator John Kerry and the Democrats about American attitudes to the war in Iraq.On the one hand, the White House should be pleased to learn that:A clear 59% to 36% majority of the public believes that ""President Bush did everything a reasonable person would have done under the circumstances before 9/11 to protect the United States.""A large 71% to 24% majority of the public agrees that ""before 9/11 there were so many intelligence reports indicating so many different things that it was very difficult for the government to know which ones were real threats and which ones were not.""On the other hand, President Bush's critics and Democratic opponents will be encouraged to see that many of their positions are endorsed by most of Americans:A modest 52% to 43% majority believes that ""the invasion of Iraq has not helped to protect the United States."" While most Republicans (71%) believe that it has helped, most Democrats (71%) and Independents (55%) disagree.A substantial 60% to 33% majority believes that ""invading and occupying Iraq has motivated more Islamic terrorists to attack Americans and the United States.""A slender 51% to 44% majority believes that ""spending huge sums of money to invade and occupy Iraq has meant that a lot less money has been available to protect the United States against another terrorist attack.""A 56% to 41% majority does not believe that ""invading Iraq has helped to reduce the threat of another terrorist attack against the United States.""The nationwide poll of adults was conducted between April 8 and 15.Harris Interactive is a worldwide market research and consulting firm best known for The Harris Poll.Visit Harris Interactive: www.harrisinteractive.com "