Amid the disclosure that the federal government has systematically obtained massive amounts of Verizon phone records, a new poll shows that a preponderant majority of adults already fear that their private communications are no longer private. Americans believe their cell-phone, e-mail, and other communications history is more likely to be […] Read more »
Game of Drones
President Obama will be discussing his administration’s drone program and other elements of his counterterrorism strategy in a speech he will deliver today at the National Defense University. … Many of the major US survey organizations asked about the issue in the last few months, particularly after Rand Paul’s 13-hour […] Read more »
The reality is Americans aren’t that concerned about drones
President Obama is expected to discuss the use of drone strikes today in a speech on national security. For those who read this website, the use of unmanned aerial vehicles to take out suspected terrorists is a hot topic, but what exactly do Americans think of the practice? Frankly, most […] Read more »
Polling when public attention is limited: Different questions, different results
When three different polling organizations conducted surveys last weekend to gauge public reaction to the news about the Department of Justice’s subpoenas of reporters’ phone records, their findings were quite different – a case study in the challenges pollsters face in a breaking news environment when public attention and information […] Read more »
Partisan Interest, Reactions to IRS and AP Controversies
So far, public interest in a trio of controversies connected to the Obama administration has been limited. Roughly a quarter (26%) of Americans say they are closely following reports that the IRS targeted conservative groups. About the same number (25%) are tracking the Benghazi investigation, and even fewer (16%) are […] Read more »
CNN Poll: Controversies hurting Obama? Has GOP overreacted?
President Barack Obama comes out of what was arguably the worst week of his presidency with his approval rating holding steady, according to a new national poll. But a CNN/ORC International survey released Sunday morning also indicates that congressional Republicans are not overplaying their hand when it comes to their […] Read more »