These poll numbers were released earlier today by Rasmussen Reports -- "an electronic publishing firm specializing in the collection, publication, and distribution of public opinion polling information."
59% Reject Pope's Call for More International Regulation of Economy
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Just 17% of Americans agree with Pope Benedict XVI's call for more international regulation of the U.S. economy, as part of a new papal encyclical urging world leaders to steer the world economy in a more moral direction.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 59% of American adults believe international organizations like the United Nations should have less influence on U.S. economic policy, not more. Twenty-four percent (24%) are not sure.
Investors are even more adamant: 67% favor less international regulation of the American economy.
Seventy-three percent (73%) of Republicans and 63% of adults not affiliated with either major political party say international organizations should have less influence over the U.S. economy. Democrats are more closely divided, but a plurality (44%) agree.
The pope released the encyclical on Tuesday in advance of his meeting later in the week with President Obama , but only 25% of Americans believe it is possible to regulate the world economy to steer it in the direction of morality and a pursuit of the common good.
Forty-seven percent (47%) say it is not possible to regulate the world economy to achieve these goals. Again, however, a substantial number (28%) are not sure.
USA Today reports that the pope's meeting with the president is likely to be "focused squarely on the worldwide financial crisis and on the pope's vision for a 'true world political authority' to manage the global economy with God-centered ethics."
Interestingly, Republicans and Democrats feel less strongly than unaffiliated adults about the possibility of achieving the pope's goals.
Sixty-two percent (62%) of unaffiliateds say it is not possible to regulate the world economy in a more moral fashion , but just 45% of Republicans and 37% of Democrats - a plurality in both cases - share that view.
Thirty-nine percent (39%) of all Americans say it is at least somewhat likely that this week's G8 gathering of leaders, which includes Obama, will agree to a significant plan to help the world's economy. Only eight percent (8%) say it is very likely.
Fifty-four percent (54%) think it is unlikely the group will produce a significant economic plan: 44% say it's not very likely, and 10% say it's not at all likely.
Fifty-five percent (55%) of Democrats think the G8 is likely to produce a significant economic plan, but 66% of Republicans and 70% of unaffiliated adults say that's unlikely.
Most Americans (51%) continue to believe that decisions made by U.S. business leaders to help their own businesses grow will do more to help the U.S. economy than decisions made by world leaders to grow the global economy. But 34% say the decisions made by world leaders will help the American economy more.
These numbers represent a four-point increase in confidence in world leaders over how Americans felt at the end of March, following the close of the G20 economic summit .
Fifty-nine percent (59%) of investors have more confidence in U.S. business leaders, compared to 43% of non-investors. Republicans are twice as likely as Democrats to put their faith in the decisions of U.S. business leaders rather than those of world leaders.
The majority of Americans consistently in surveys trust private businessmen more than the government on economic matters. Just 17%, for example, say the government is more likely to spend its money wisely and carefully than a private business .
Historically, Americans are also suspicious of international bodies. Seventeen percent (17%) of voters regard the United Nations as an enemy of the United States , while 27% of U.S. voters say it's an ally. Forty-nine percent (49%) see it as somewhere in between an ally and an enemy.
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To view the original report, please use this link: Pope Gets It Wrong