Just 39% Believe Iraq Report Will Honestly Present Petraeus Views; 35% Say It Will Not

[Hissyspit]

http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/just_39_believe_iraq_report_will_honestly_present_petraeus_views_35_say_it_will_not

Survey of 800 Likely Voters
September 4, 2007

Will General Petraeus Issue a Positive or Negative Report on Troop Surge Next WeeK?

Positive
45%

Negative
24%

Not Sure
31%

Will Report By Petraeus Honestly and Accurately Reflect His View of the Situation?

Yes
39%

No
35%

Not Sure
26%


Just 39% Believe Iraq Report Will Honestly Present Petraeus Views; 35% Say It Will Not
Wednesday, September 05, 2007

General David Petraeus, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq, will be issuing a formal progress report on the situation in Iraq next week. A Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that 45% of American voters expect a positive report while 24% expect the opposite. Thirty-one percent (31%) are not sure.

However, just 39% believe the report will honestly and accurately reflect the General’s true assessment of the situation in Iraq. Thirty-five percent (35%) say it will not while 26% are not sure.

As with all polling questions on the topic of Iraq, there is a sharp divide along partisan lines. Republicans, by a 62% to 14% margin, expect a positive report. Democrats are evenly divided with 34% anticipating a positive report and 31% with the opposite view. Forty-two percent (42%) of those not affiliated with either major party say the report will be positive and 25% of unaffiliateds say negative.

By a 58% to 22% margin, Republicans expect the report to honestly reflect the views of Petraeus. Just 25% of Democrats share that assessment while 43% say the report will not accurately reflect what Petraeus thinks. Unaffiliateds are evenly divided.

The Rasmussen Reports telephone survey also found that 27% of American voters believe the troop surge is working and 25% say it is too early to tell. Forty-three percent (43%) believe the troop surge has failed. Those figures are similar to results from a month ago. The current public assessment is a bit more upbeat than at the beginning of the summer.