Poll Finds Most Americans Oppose Military Strike

By MEGAN THEE-BRENAN

As President Obama’s campaign to rally support for airstrikes against Syria continues, there is widespread opposition to any military intervention, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. Part of Mr. Obama’s problem may be messaging. More than three-quarters of Americans (including 7 in 10 Democrats and about 9 in 10 Republicans) say his administration has not clearly explained what the country’s goals would be in Syria. Over all, 56 percent disapprove of the president’s handling of the Syrian crisis so far, and 33 percent approve. There are sharp partisan differences on the president’s performance: 52 percent of Democrats approve of how he is dealing with Syria, while 77 percent of Republicans and 63 percent of independents disapprove. Mr. Obama has the difficult job of convincing wary Americans, including many in his own party, that intervention in Syria is in the best interests of the United States. But it is not all about messaging. When Mr. Obama addresses the nation on Tuesday evening to discuss his strategy in Syria, the poll findings suggest he will be facing a war-weary public. Nearly 9 in 10 Americans are concerned that United States military action in Syria will become a long and costly mission, and 90 percent are concerned that it would lead to a more widespread war in the Middle East. One factor working in the president’s favor is that history has shown that the American public usually rallies around the commander in chief once military action has been taken overseas, even if public sentiment was against that action beforehand. The nationwide telephone poll of 1,011 adults was conducted Sept. 6 to 8 on landlines and cellphones and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points.