Democrats Strongly Oppose Sending More Troops to Afghanistan, Most Voters Wary of War's Outcome

Democrats Strongly Oppose Sending More Troops to Afghanistan, Most Voters Wary
of War's Outcome

WASHINGTON, Oct. 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Most Americans believe the war
in Afghanistan so far has been unsuccessful and oppose sending more troops,
according to a new nationwide poll conducted by Clarus Research Group, a
nonpartisan polling and research firm based in Washington, D.C.

A solid majority of voters surveyed believe the conflict will "go on and on
without a clear resolution." Sixty-eight percent of the poll's respondents
think the U.S. will neither win nor lose the war, while 20 percent think we
will eventually win it and 6 percent expect that we will lose it.

Forty percent of the poll's respondents said they want the U.S. to decrease
troop presence and begin to get out, 38 percent support an increase in troops,
and 14 percent want the number of troops to remain the same as it is now.

Of Democrats polled, 61 percent want to decrease troop levels and begin to get
out and only 17 percent support adding more troops. On the other hand, 54
percent of Republicans and 47 percent of Independents favor increasing US
troops in Afghanistan.

"Should President Obama decide to send more troops to Afghanistan, he will do
it in the face of strong opposition from voters in his own party," said Ron
Faucheux, president of Clarus Research Group. "At a time when American public
opinion is highly polarized, this situation presents a tough political
equation for the president."

According to the Clarus Poll:

-- Winning the War
-- 55 percent say the war so far has been unsuccessful in defeating
the
Taliban and Al Qaeda; 42 percent say it has been successful.

-- 61 percent of Democrats, 56 percent of Independents, and 41
percent
of Republicans say the war in Afghanistan has so far not been
successful.

-- Troop Level Support: Big differences by age, gender, race
-- Voters 45 and older: 43 percent favor sending more troops to
Afghanistan and 36 percent want to reduce the number of troops and
begin to get out.
-- Voters under 30: 62 percent want to decrease troops fighting the
war in Afghanistan and 24 percent support increasing the number of
US troops.
-- 45 percent of men and 33 percent of women support adding troops.

-- 14 percent of Hispanics, 16 percent of blacks and 45 percent of
whites back sending more troops to Afghanistan

The poll was conducted by Clarus Research Group on October 1-4, 2009. Sample
size was 1,000 registered voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1
percent. The survey was conducted through live telephone interviewing.
Questions reported here were asked by Clarus for its own use and were not
sponsored or paid for by any client.

The following are the exact survey questions and the order in which they were
asked, along with the nationwide results (rounded to nearest percentages):

Do you think the war in Afghanistan has been very successful, somewhat
successful, somewhat unsuccessful, or very unsuccessful in terms of defeating
the Taliban and Al Qaeda?

3% Very Successful
39% Somewhat successful
30% Somewhat unsuccessful
25% Very unsuccessful
4% Don't know/no answer

Do you think the war in Afghanistan is a conflict the United States will
eventually win, do you think it's a conflict the U.S. will eventually lose, or
do you think it's a conflict that will go on and on without a clear
resolution?

20% Eventually win
6% Eventually lose
68% Will go on and on
6% Don't know/no answer

At this point - do you think President Obama should increase the number of
U.S. troops in Afghanistan, keep the same number of U.S. troops in Afghanistan
as there is now, or decrease the number of troops in Afghanistan and begin to
get out?

38% Increase troops
14% Keep the same
40% Decrease troops
7% Don't know/no answer

For more information about Clarus Research Group, go to www.ClarusRG.com.

SOURCE Clarus Research Group

Ron Faucheux of Clarus Research Group, +1-202-256-8036,
rfaucheux@ClarusRG.com