Bush really did think we'd find WMD

[lukpac]

Dear god...

BADGER POLL: Bush is backed on WMD
Residents say he believed info

By David Callender
April 6, 2004

Nearly three-fourths of Wisconsin residents in a poll say they think President Bush actually believed there were weapons of mass destruction in Iraq when he decided to go to war last year.

Bush cited the presence of those weapons - and the threat that they could fall into the hands of terrorists - as the principal reason for the United States to go to war with Iraq last year.

But so far, U.S. troops have been unable to find any such weapons, and the former chief U.S. weapons inspector has said he believes the Bush administration was mistaken in its original assessment.

Still, 73 percent of Wisconsin residents surveyed in the latest Badger Poll said Bush probably believed the reports of such weapons were true. Only 22 percent said they thought Bush knew otherwise.

A majority of residents also believe that U.S. troops may still find those weapons.

Fifty-three percent said that the weapons haven't been found because the Iraqis hid them. That's up from the last time the question was asked in January, but down from a high of 66 percent last May, just after major combat operations ended.

Those responses "are good news for Bush," said Badger Poll director G. Donald Ferree Jr., and suggest that some of the criticism aimed at Bush is not resonating with Wisconsin residents.

Moreover, he noted, Wisconsin residents remain closely split on the justification for the war. Asked even if the United States believed there were no weapons of mass destruction, 40 percent said they thought the war was still a good idea, compared to 36 percent who thought it was not.

"Overall, residents seem to believe that Bush was sincere and that the justification for the war does not rise or fall on WMDs," he said.

The poll found that Bush's performance ratings in general stayed steady from the last poll, but show a major decline from their all-time highs last year.

Forty-six percent said Bush's overall performance was either excellent or good. That's about the same proportion as in January, but down from the record 69 percent Bush scored last April at the start of the war in Iraq.

As in past polls, Bush rated far better on issues relating to the war, foreign policy and terrorism than on domestic issues.

He received the highest marks on dealing with terrorism (55 percent rated him good or excellent), Iraq (46 percent), and foreign policy in general (40 percent), all of which showed gains from the last Badger Poll in January.

His weakest scores were on handling "problems here at home" (31 percent) and dealing with the economy (29 percent), but again, scores on both counts were virtually identical to those three months ago.

The Badger Poll surveyed 500 randomly selected residents by phone between March 23 and 31 and had a margin of error of about 4 percentage points. The poll was sponsored by The Capital Times and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.


E-mail: dcallender@madison.com

Published: 9:41 AM 4/06/04

[Rspaight]

I don't doubt that Bush thought they were there. It's what Cheney, Condi, Rummy, Perle and Wolfowitz thought that interests me. Bush was just along for the ride.

Ryan