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."
46% Say Al Qaeda Weaker Now Than Before 9/11
Sunday, June 26, 2911
Nearly one-half (48%) of Likely U.S. Voters think the al Qaeda terrorist organization is weaker today than it was before the September 11, 2001 attacks on America.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that only 11% of voters think the terrorist group is stronger today, despite the killing last month of its leader Osama bin Laden. Thirty-two percent (32%) say al Qaeda's strength is about the same now as it was prior to 9/11. (To see survey question wording, click here .)
By comparison, in a survey last September , 36% thought al Qaeda was stronger than it was before the 9/11 attacks. Only 25% disagreed and felt the terrorist organization was weaker.
Overall voter confidence in U.S. efforts in the War on Terror remains at recent record levels. A plurality (46%) of voters believe the United States is safer today than it was before the 9/11 terrorist attacks. That finding has ranged from 39% to 54% since November 2006.
The survey of 1,000 Likely Voters was conducted on June 22-23, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC . See methodology .
President Obama last Wedneasday announced that the United States will withdraw 10,000 troops from Afghanistan this year and will bring another 23,000 home by the end of next summer. But most voters don't think the president has gone far enough. Fifty-one percent (51%) want all U.S. troops out of Afghanistan within a year, with 31% who want an immediate troop withdrawal and another 21% who want a firm timetable for full withdrawal within one year.
Male voters are more convinced that women - by a 57% to 39% margin - that al Qaeda is weaker today than it was before 9/11. There's little partisan disagreement about this, however.
But nearly one-out-of-three Political Class voters (32%) think al Qaeda is stronger today than it was before September 11, 2001, a view shared by just 12% of Mainstream voters.
Americans remain highly concerned about the possibility of a terrorist attack in the United States in the near future, but that concern has not increased because of the killing of bin Laden.
Seventy-three percent (73%) say a terrorist threat is a greater threat to the United States than a nuclear attack .
Most voters worry about homegrown terrorist attacks , and a sizable number think the government is not paying enough attention to the potential danger of domestic Islamic terrorism. Only 10% of voters think American Muslims are speaking out enough against potential terrorist attacks in the United States.