Despite what the White House insists, the American People™ don’t feel safer.
A new survey by the Council for Excellence in Government — the same folks who did the survey on the portrayal of government in media — shows that less than fifty percent of Americans think the country is safer now than it was on September 11. More than 3/4 expect another terrorist attack in the next few months. Again, from the Post:
The survey, released yesterday by the nonpartisan Council for Excellence in Government, found that about half of respondents were concerned that terrorists would strike near their home or work. Seventy-three percent identified themselves as anxious or concerned about terrorism, and 26 percent said they were calm.
… The survey of 1,633 adults from Feb. 5 to Feb. 8 also found that although Americans are concerned about terrorism, they rank it behind the economy and health care as the nation’s top priorities. The margin of error was plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Well, we know that Bush is pretty much devoid of anything leverage on the economy and health care — all he has is spin, not real accomplishment — so add in the lack of safety as the third issue and it’s looking more and more possible that people are waking up to reality. Could it be that we have a chance to be rid of him? What magical event do they have up their sleeves for October to ensure a win?
Scary, though, is the result of polling on issues of privacy:
Fifty-nine percent, for instance, said the government should have access to companies’ personal information about their customers if it might help prevent terrorism. And yet the survey found that only 27 percent of Americans strongly trust the government to use personal information appropriately.
In a similar vein, 56 percent of respondents believe that the USA Patriot Act — a law that expanded government surveillance powers and information-sharing by law enforcement agencies — is good for the country. However, 13 percent said the law is not working and should expire. An additional 50 percent said there are important questions about how the act has been implemented, which Congress should debate before renewing it.
[CEG President] McGinnis said her reading of such mixed results was that Americans are willing to increase some government powers but still want strong government oversight and accountability. “People are willing to trade their privacy for security, but they would like to have some sense of ground rules and process,” she said.
I think that most people don’t think of themselves as potential victims of such legislation as the PATRIOT Act. They’re usually thinking that it couldn’t happen to them.
Just as an aside, once again an un-trademarked phrase of mine has been stolen. The CEG report is titled “Home Front to Front Lines,” a title I used 9 years ago on a magazine highlighting the role of women in wartime. The difference is that that magazine was copyrighted…
