Gallup: Americans Disapprove of Gov't Surveillance Programs; Split on Whether Leaker Right or Wrong

[Hissyspit]

Source: Gallup

June 12, 2013

Americans Disapprove of Government Surveillance Programs Americans split on whether leaker did the right or wrong thing

by Frank Newport PRINCETON, NJ

-- More Americans disapprove (53%) than approve (37%) of the federal government agency program that as part of its efforts to investigate terrorism obtained records from U.S. telephone and Internet companies to "compile telephone call logs and Internet communications."

These results are from a June 10-11 Gallup poll. Although the current survey context was different, these results are similar to those obtained in a May 2006 Gallup poll measuring support for a government program that "obtained records from three of the largest U.S. telephone companies in order to create a database of billions of telephone numbers dialed by Americans." In that survey, 43% approved and 51% disapproved.

There are significant partisan differences in views of the government's program to obtain call logs and Internet communication. Democrats are more likely to approve, by 49% to 40%. Independents (34% vs. 56%) and Republicans (32% to 63%) are much more likely to disapprove than approve.

In 2006, when Gallup asked a similar question about a program that came to light at that point, Republicans were significantly more likely to approve than Democrats. The differences in partisan reaction between 2006 and 2013 reflect the party of the president under whose watch the programs were carried out at those two points in time.

Read more: http://www.gallup.com/poll/163043/americans-disapprove-government-surveillance-programs.aspx

[savalez]

1. Gallup is somehow credible now?

[blkmusclmachine]

4. Depends on if they're telling you what you want to hear.

[Cha]

8. Oh yeah!

[MADem]

20. What I noticed is they always pushed their data towards the MOE to favor the GOP.

They'd say the GOP was winning 55-45, with a 5% MOE, when their data ACTUALLY had the race at 50-50, for example.

That's how their stuff came across to me, as compared to some other outlets.

Even if the figures are sloppy and off the mark, they do demonstrate that this issue isn't breaking solely along party lines, which is what I noticed when the story broke.

[napoleon_in_rags]

2. There was a poll going around about a 56% percent approval rate.

I actually quoted it. But it turned out, that one asked specifically about court approval for the spying. Also it the poll focused on the phone meta records, which I don't think people care about. (They are basically public records, people can buy them.)

source on second part:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/rieder/2013/06/12/rem-rieder-surveillance/2415753/

It may well be that public opinion is on the side of the Bush/Obama approach. A Pew Research Center/Washington Post poll released Monday found that 56% of the American public was cool with the government collecting the phone records of millions of Americans, while 41% said it was a bad idea. On the other hand, 52% were against having the government "monitor everyone's e-mail and other online activities if officials say this might prevent future terrorist attacks," while 45% thought it was fine.

[graham4anything]

3. This is NOT the latest poll, which shows more than 50% are okay with it

Gallop btw thinks Mitt Romney is president.

[Swede Atlanta]

16. The problem is in the way the results are reported......

First of all, the way people respond is highly affected by the question.

For example:

(1) Do you believe that recording only the telephone number and duration of a call that originated from an identifiable telephone number in order to enable the government to identity potential terrorist threats is acceptable OR

(2) Do you believe that the un-targeted amassing of information about the telephone numbers and the duration of calls to those numbers without respect to an instance of probable cause is acceptable

Both ask the same general question.

The other is how the results are interpreted by "Barbie". I find often it you look at the actual results of their skewed questioning and compare it to what they say there is a huge discrepancy. They often interpret the returns for their own political agenda.

[Life Long Dem]

6. "Telephone calls"?

How about using the right words in a poll. More like "Telephone numbers". Calls plays into the BS that NSA is listening to your phone calls.

[L0oniX]

10. Well that would be ECHELON that listens in on phone calls.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ECHELON

[avaistheone1]

7. It seems as people are becoming better informed about how their privacy is being violated the more

Americans are coming out against these kinds of totalitarian surveillance tactics.

[still_one]

12. Do you really believe that more republicans disapprove than approve? They created the spying

Even the way the question is worded, with heavy emphasis on the current administration tells me this is a political poll and not a true representative sample

[OnyxCollie]

17. In 2002, liberals were more supportive of laws like the USA PATRIOT Act

than were conservatives, even when controlling for concern of being personally victimized by terrorism.

http://sync.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x582516#582750

Methodology

The data for this study was obtained through the Inter-university Consortium for Political
and Social Research. The data is a Washington Post September 11th Poll, conducted September
3-6, 2002. The poll was conducted through telephone surveys, whereby the households called
were chosen by random-digit dialing and the respondent chosen was an adult who last had a
birthday and was present at the time. The data set includes 1,003 cases and 81 variables.
This data was chosen for the respondent’s views on whether the September 11 attacks had
changed their lives, if people could be trusted, if they were concerned for their safety, if they
supported laws to aid the F.B.I. in the investigation of terrorism, whether they would sacrifice
freedoms to aid in the investigation of terrorism, if they approved of their congressional
representative, if they intended to re-elect their congressional representative, and which party
they would be voting for in the 2002 congressional election. Supporting laws, sacrificing
freedom, approval and re-election of congressional representatives, and choice of political party
for congressional representative vote will serve as the dependent variables. Whether 9/11
changed their lives, if the change affected their day-to-day lives or if it changed the way they
thought about things, and trust in people will serve as the independent variables. Concern over
personally being the victim of a terrorist attack will serve as the control variable.

[L0oniX]

9. In other words ...a jury would acquit.

[still_one]

11. That is a bogus poll. Republicans disapprove more than other republicans, and Democrats

approve more than other Democrats

Not only is this entirely politically biased, I suspect good ole frank Newport is oversaling republicans like he has done in the past

Also, the wording implies that all of this "spying" is the result of the guy in the WH

[Ash_F]

13. A similar poll in 2006 was split the opposite way along party lines.

Damn. 20% of people are unabashed hypocrites?

[Skittles]

15. seems like there is a bigger percentage of them here

[Iliyah]

14. Gallup also said we like W now

BS

[Fearless]

18. Constitutionality is not a popularity poll!

[Hissyspit]

19. Ding.

We have a winner.