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Poll Finds Obama Dividing Nation On Guantanamo
Closing Splits Voters
By Michael P. Tremoglie, The Bulletin
A Fox News/Opinion Dynamics Poll confirms what The Bulletin reported nearly two weeks ago, that the decision to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility is divisive.
The poll indicates that President Barack Obama’s decision to close the Guantanamo Bay terrorist prison facility, also known as Gitmo, has divided Americans.
Forty-five percent of Americans think Gitmo should remain open. Nearly as many — 47 percent — think the military prison at Guantanamo Bay should be closed. Sixty-three percent of Democrats think the prison should be closed, while 74 percent of Republicans think it should stay open. Significantly, independent voters are evenly split, 48 percent closed to 45 percent stay open.
But only 12 percent of Americans think closing Gitmo will make the United States safer — and almost three times as many, 32 percent, say it will make the country less safe.
About half, 51 percent, think it won’t make much of a difference either way.
Nearly two-thirds of Americans, 63 percent, think it was a bad idea for President Obama to order the closure of the Guantanamo Bay facility without having a policy about what to do with its detainees.
The poll shows 63 percent of Americans oppose having them moved to prison facilities near them. Fifty-two percent do not want them in the United States at all, while only 42 percent say they should be sent here.
President Barack Obama campaigned on a pledge to unify the nation. But relatives and friends of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and families of those killed in action in Iraq were outraged by his executive order to close Gitmo and to suspend active military commission proceedings there.
This poll indicates that they have support among half of their fellow citizens, and almost two out of three disagree with Mr. Obama’s specific actions.
Opinion Dynamics Corp. conducted the national telephone poll of 900 registered voters for FOX News from Jan. 27 to Jan. 28. The poll has a 3-point error margin.
Michael P. Tremoglie can be contacted at mtremoglie@thebulletin.us
The poll indicates that President Barack Obama’s decision to close the Guantanamo Bay terrorist prison facility, also known as Gitmo, has divided Americans.
Forty-five percent of Americans think Gitmo should remain open. Nearly as many — 47 percent — think the military prison at Guantanamo Bay should be closed. Sixty-three percent of Democrats think the prison should be closed, while 74 percent of Republicans think it should stay open. Significantly, independent voters are evenly split, 48 percent closed to 45 percent stay open.
But only 12 percent of Americans think closing Gitmo will make the United States safer — and almost three times as many, 32 percent, say it will make the country less safe.
About half, 51 percent, think it won’t make much of a difference either way.
Nearly two-thirds of Americans, 63 percent, think it was a bad idea for President Obama to order the closure of the Guantanamo Bay facility without having a policy about what to do with its detainees.
The poll shows 63 percent of Americans oppose having them moved to prison facilities near them. Fifty-two percent do not want them in the United States at all, while only 42 percent say they should be sent here.
President Barack Obama campaigned on a pledge to unify the nation. But relatives and friends of the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks and families of those killed in action in Iraq were outraged by his executive order to close Gitmo and to suspend active military commission proceedings there.
This poll indicates that they have support among half of their fellow citizens, and almost two out of three disagree with Mr. Obama’s specific actions.
Opinion Dynamics Corp. conducted the national telephone poll of 900 registered voters for FOX News from Jan. 27 to Jan. 28. The poll has a 3-point error margin.
Michael P. Tremoglie can be contacted at mtremoglie@thebulletin.us
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Goright wrote on Feb 3, 2009 1:38 PM:
Time to move on. "