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New foreign policy index finds anxious public pulling back from use of force

Public Agenda Alert
April 4, 2007

Public anxiety about America's place in the world has reached troubling levels, according to the new edition of Public Agenda's Confidence in Foreign Policy Index, released today. The research provides striking evidence that Americans' anguish over Iraq is spilling over to other areas of foreign policy, with serious potential effects on the options available to current and future leaders.

The Foreign Policy Index, conducted every six months in cooperation with Foreign Affairs magazine, tracks attitudes on more than 110 items covering nearly all major aspects of foreign policy. The index includes the Anxiety Indicator, designed to track the public's comfort level with foreign policy in much the same way the Consumer Confidence Index tracks their view of the economy.

The Anxiety Indicator increased seven points in six months. That puts the indicator at 137 on a 200-point scale, edging toward the 150 mark that we would consider a crisis of confidence in government policy.

The public's disenchantment is also leading to increased skepticism about the use of military force in general and a stronger inclination to diplomatic options. As far as the vast majority of Americans are concerned, military force is "off the table" in dealing with Iran. There's also been a sharp drop in public confidence in military force as a tool for dealing with other countries developing weapons of mass destruction,even though controlling the spread of nuclear weapons is the public's top policy priority.

You can download a free copy of the full report, view a multimedia presentation and give us your feedback:
http://www.publicagenda.org/foreignpolicy/index.cfm

Key findings

The Anxiety Indicator is a composite score based on five leading indicators:

• 84 percent are worried about the way things are going for the United States in world affairs

• 82 percent say the world is becoming more dangerous for the United States and its people (48 percent say "much more dangerous")

• 73 percent say the United States is not doing a good job as a leader in creating a more peaceful and prosperous world

• 68 percent believe the rest of the world sees the United States negatively

• 67 percent say U.S. relations with the rest of the world are on the wrong track (an increase of nine points since the last edition)

On Iran and the use of force:

• In dealing with Iran, most favor improved diplomatic relations (44 percent) or economic sanctions (28 percent). Support for possible military action is in the single digits (8 percent).

• Presented with a list of proposals for strengthening our nation's security, "attacking countries that develop weapons of mass destruction" was ranked at the very bottom (only 17 percent say it would strengthen our security "a lot")

On Iraq:

• Seven in 10 favor a withdrawal (51 percent within 12 months, 19 percent immediately). Only 27 percent want to stay "as long as it takes."

• 61 percent say America's safety from terrorism does not depend on our success in Iraq

• But 60 percent also say we have a moral obligation to the Iraqi people

The Confidence in U.S. Foreign Policy Index is conducted with support from the Ford Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
http://www.publicagenda.org/foreignpolicy/index.cfm

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