Most Americans (70 percent) say they think the media did a good job covering the attacks, though a quarter of those polled do not. Americans are split on whether the coverage helped or hurt investigators’ efforts, however. About one-third of respondents say the media’s coverage helped law enforcement officials solve the case, while slightly less–29 percent–say it hindered efforts.
Forty-two percent of those polled remain either very (19 percent) or somewhat (23 percent) concerned that someone in their family will become a victim of sniper violence, down slightly from 47 percent in the NEWSWEEK poll taken two weeks ago. Fear remains higher among women and minorities; half of the women polled, and 58 percent of minorities, are very or somewhat worried about being the victim of this kind of violence.
Nearly half of those polled (49 percent) say the sniper attacks did not affect their views on anti-gun legislation. However, 36 percent say the sniper shootings made them more likely to support stricter gun control laws (45 percent of non-gun owners felt that way but just 22 percent of gun owners did). Fifty-three percent of those polled say they do favor new laws requiring ballistic fingerprinting of all guns sold in the United States; 37 percent oppose it. Among gun owners, though, just 40 percent favor ballistic fingerprinting while 52 percent oppose it.
Though the elections for U.S. Congress are just 10 days away, neither political party holds a clear lead, according to the poll. If the Congressional midterm elections were held today, Republicans would have a slight edge; 46 percent of likely voters say they would vote for the GOP candidates, 43 percent for the Democratic candidate (a reverse of results of the poll taken two weeks ago). But among registered voters in general, 43 percent say they’d vote for the Democratic Party’s candidate, with 41 percent saying they will vote Republican. In the NEWSWEEK poll two weeks ago, registered voters were evenly divided with each party garnering 43 percent.
Since these figures are all within the poll’s three-percent margin of error, the results indicate the parties remain in a statistical heat. It remains unclear which party will end up in control of the House of Representatives and of the U.S. Senate after the election on November 5. In the Senate, the Democrats had a one-seat majority, though the death Friday of two-term Democratic incumbent Sen. Paul Wellstone from Minnesota throws that balance into question (no replacement has yet been appointed). In the House, meanwhile, Democrats need to pick up six seats to gain control.
Voters are putting less importance on the issue of war with Iraq as the Congressional election approaches. Proposals to help the economy and social issues like healthcare now top the list, with an equal number (29 percent) of registered voters citing each as the most important issue. Twenty-three percent of registered voters say the issue of Iraq is the top issue in deciding their vote next month. And 13 percent cite local issues. In the poll taken two weeks ago, Iraq was the top issue, with 30 percent.
A clear plurality of those polled say they trust the GOP more in handling the war against terrorism at home and abroad (47 percent, compared to 24 percent for Democrats), the threat of war with Iraq (43 percent versus 28 percent for Democrats), and crime (40 percent versus 27 percent trusting the Democrats). Republicans also had a slight edge on the issue of taxes, with 40 percent trusting the GOP more and 36 percent placing more trust in the Democrats.
However, Americans tend to trust the Democrats more on social issues. Forty-three percent of voters trust the Democrats more when it comes to Medicare (versus 31 percent for Republicans), 42 percent trust Democrats more on Social Security (versus 32 percent for the GOP), 41 percent also trust the Democrats more on healthcare issues other than Medicare (versus 31 percent for the GOP).
The two political parties rank about even statistically on the economy (38 percent trust the GOP, 37 percent trust Democrats); education (38 percent trust the Democrats, 36 percent trust the GOP); and handling corporate financial scandals (34 percent trust the Democrats, 33 percent trust the GOP). President George Bush’s job approval rating remains steady at 61 percent, the same as the last NEWSWEEK poll two weeks ago. But his ratings have dropped significantly from their peak of 88 percent a year ago.
Support for military action against Iraq also remains steady at 64 percent, just two points less than in the last poll. Half of those polled would prefer to delay military action against Iraq to try to gain more support from U.S. allies, even if it gives Saddam Hussein more time to prepare for an attack and to attempt to develop weapons of mass destruction. Meanwhile, 37 percent say it is more important to take military action in the next month or so, even if many of our allies continue to oppose it-a five-point decrease from the last poll.
The vast majority of Americans polled still prefer to secure international support before attacking Iraq. Eighty-five percent says it’s either very (61 percent) or somewhat (24 percent) important to get support from most of our European allies, 84 percent say it’s very (61 percent) or somewhat (23 percent) important that the U.S. get formal support from the United Nations. Eighty percent say it’s also very (52 percent) or somewhat (28 percent) important to get support from most of the Arab countries that are friendly to the U.S.
For this NEWSWEEK poll, Princeton Survey Research Associates interviewed by telephone 1,001 adults, aged 18 and older on October 24 and October 25. The margin of error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
