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Public Believes Prison Guards Were Following Orders
PHILADELPHIA -- The American public's opinion about prisoner abuse in Iraq has shifted dramatically away from the idea that the guards were acting on their own at the Abu Ghraib prison to the belief that they followed orders, the University of Pennsylvania's National Annenberg Election Survey shows. In polling from last Monday through Sunday night, 48% said the guards were "following orders from their commanders," while 30% said they acted "on their own," and 9% said both were true. From May 6 through 9, just two weeks earlier, 47% said they acted on their own, 31% said they followed orders and 6% said both, the Annenberg survey found. In the latest polling, 1,997 people were interviewed and the margin of sampling error was plus or minus two percentage points.That Annenberg election survey, the largest academic election poll, is a project of the Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania. It has been tracking the presidential campaign since October 7, and interviewing will continue until after Election Day. On the eve of President Bush's speech tonight to discuss policy in Iraq, 64% of the public said they did not believe he had "a clear plan for bringing the situation in Iraq to a successful conclusion," while 30% said he had a plan. Those percentages have remained steady in May. The public is also now evenly split about keeping troops in Iraq "until a stable government is formed." Forty-seven percent want to do that, while 47% want the troops brought "home as soon as possible." In the first two weeks of May, the survey found 50% wanted to keep them in Iraq and 45% wanted to bring them home. But the public turned on Bush's handling of the war on terrorism, a political strength the President's campaign has relied on. Fifty percent disapprove of his handling of the war on terrorism while 46% approve. Until now the Annenberg polling has shown more Americans approving than disapproving, though by shrinking margins. On another question, 64% of the public said the war had "increased the risk of terrorism against the United States," while 24% said the risk had been reduced by the war.There was also for the first time a solid majority saying "the situation in Iraq" was not "worth going to war over." Fifty-four percent held that view, while 40% said it was worth it. In the first two weeks of May, 50% said the war was not worth it, while 45% said it was, according to the survey. But despite the increasingly negative views on the situation in Iraq, there was little change in the public's support for Donald H. Rusted, the Secretary of Defense. Sixty-three percent said he should not resign because of the prison abuse scandal, while 28% said he should go. Two weeks ago, 66% said he should stay on while 24% said he should quit. Political independents took a series of negative stands on Iraq and terrorism. Sixty-one percent disapproved of how the president was handling Iraq, 53% disapproved of his handling of the war on terrorism, 70% said he did not have a clear plan for bring the situation in Iraq to a successful conclusion, and 50% wanted the troops brought home as soon as possible (while 43% wanted them to stay until a stable government was established). And 53% of independents disapproved of his overall handling of his job as president while 44% approved. For the public as a whole, 50% disapproved while 48% approved. Visit the Annenberg Public Policy Center: www.AnnenbergPublicPolicyCenter.org "