Drop In Foreign Policy Approval Keeps Obama Score Low

American Voters Say 2-1 Stay Out Of Syria, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Drop In Foreign Policy Approval Keeps Obama Score Low

PDF format American voters say 61 - 27 percent that it is not in the national interest to be involved in Syria and oppose 59 - 27 percent providing arms and military supplies to anti-government groups, according to a Quinnipiac University national poll released today.

Voters support 49 - 38 percent, however, using drones or cruise missiles, which do not risk American lives, to attack Syrian government targets, the independent Quinnipiac (KWIN- uh-pe-ack) University poll finds.

Republicans, Democrats and independent voters all agree that helping Syria is not in America's interest and all oppose providing arms and supplies to rebels. Republicans and Democrats support drone/cruise strikes, while independent voters are divided.

American voters give President Barack Obama a negative 40 - 52 percent approval for the way he is handling foreign policy, his worst grade ever on that score. The president's overall job approval is a negative 44 - 48 percent, little changed from a 45 - 49 percent rating May 30.

President Obama gets a positive 52 - 43 percent rating for handling terrorism and a split 46 - 45 percent score for his handling of Afghanistan. His other scores are negative: 33 - 48 percent for Syria; 41 - 50 percent for immigration and 41 - 55 percent for the economy.

Voters say 50 - 44 percent that Obama is honest and trustworthy; 52 - 46 percent that he has strong leadership qualities and 52 - 45 percent that he cares about their needs.

"President Barack Obama is in a slump, under water for the last two surveys," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.

"His negative ratings come at the same time that voters are becoming more optimistic about the economy, saying 35 - 22 percent that it's improving, with 43 percent saying it's unchanged. Voter optimism about the economy usually helps presidential approval numbers," Brown added.

"Generally, voters don't seem happy with some of the president's policies, but they still give him majority support on his personal characteristics such as honesty and leadership. They also trust Obama more than Republicans 44 - 38 percent, to fix the economy. This compares to a 43 - 43 percent split on this measure May 30."

The president has lost support among women and independent voters - the folks who supplied the key votes for his re-election just eight months ago. In April, the president's overall 49 - 45 approval rating included a 44 - 46 percent verdict from independent voters. Now he gets a negative 36 - 53 percent rating from the same group. Since April his approval among Democrats is down from 89 - 8 percent to 83 - 11 percent, while his negative 9 - 87 percent score from Republicans is virtually unchanged.

Obama's score among men has remained relatively stable from a negative 42 - 51 percent in April to 40 - 53 percent today. But among women there has been a noticeable drop, from 56 - 39 percent approval to a slim 48 - 44 percent positive rating.

On Afghanistan, voters say 63 - 28 percent that the U.S. should not negotiate with the Taliban. These same voters shift to 53 - 40 percent in favor of negotiations, "if such negotiations could end the war in Afghanistan.

Voters say 60 - 33 percent that the U.S. should not negotiate with terrorists because it will only encourage them. Voters also disagree 57 - 35 percent with the claim that negotiations with the Taliban will get American troops home more quickly.

From June 28 - July 8, Quinnipiac University surveyed 2,014 registered voters with a margin of error of +/- 2.2 percentage points. Live interviewers call land lines and cell phones.

The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia, Iowa, Colorado and the nation as a public service and for research.

For more information, visit http://www.quinnipiac.edu/polling, call (203) 582-5201, or follow us on Twitter. http://www.quinnipiac.edu/institutes-and-centers/polling-institute/national/release-detail?ReleaseID=1920