U.S. Public Now Evenly Split on Iraq War

[southernleftylady]

WASHINGTON - Nine months of chaos and casualties in Iraq (news - web sites) since Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s capture have taken a heavy toll on American opinion of President Bush (news - web sites)'s decision to go to war. Last December, when Saddam was caught, public support for Bush was 2-to-1 in favor. Now the public is evenly divided on whether the war was the right thing to do or whether it was a mistake.


Older people, minorities, people with lower incomes, residents of the Northeast and Catholics are among those increasingly skeptical of the war effort, according to Associated Press polling.

These shifts in public sentiment reflect the difficulties in Iraq — including a death toll nearing 1,000 U.S. soldiers, the violent insurgency against the new Iraqi government and U.S. forces and the failure to find weapons of mass destruction, which was among the central justifications for Bush's decision to go to war.

"It was a mistake," said 73-year-old Mil Jenkinson, a retired schoolteacher and a Democrat from Dickinson, N.D. "There were no weapons of mass destruction. I keep thinking it's not our place to rule the world. Everyone does not think our way of life is the right way.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=694&ncid=703&e=1&u=/ap/20040818/ap_on_el_pr/iraq_opinion

[DrWeird]

1. What was it like during Vietnam?

When did the public become evenly split?

[LostInAnomie]

2. Last poll I saw the majority was solidly against the war...

... and though it was a mistake.