CBS News Monthly Poll #2, March 2004

This poll, fielded March 30-April 1, 2004, is part of a series of monthly surveys that solicit public opinion on political and social issues. Views were sought on the war with Iraq, the 2004 presidential campaign, and President George W. Bush and his handling of the presidency, the economy, and foreign affairs. Questions were posed regarding the condition of the national economy, whether the country was moving in the right or wrong direction, and whether the respondent or a household member had lost his or her job in the past year. Respondents were asked whether the result of the war with Iraq and the removal of Saddam Hussein from power was worth the human and economic costs, whether the United States made the right decision in taking military action against Iraq, how long troops would remain in Iraq, the success of the war on terrorism, and whether Saddam Hussein was personally involved in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. A series of questions asked whether the policies of the Bush administration made the United States safer or less safe from terrorism, whether the administration focused too much on the Iraq war and not enough on al Qaeda terrorists, and whether the Clinton and Bush administrations and United States intelligence agencies did all they could to prevent the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Respondents were asked how closely they followed the news about the hearings investigating the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, whether the White House cooperated with the hearings, and whether members of the Bush administration told the entire truth about what they knew prior to the terrorist attacks. Respondents were also polled on how much attention they were paying to the 2004 presidential campaign, the likelihood that they would vote, whether they would vote for President George W. Bush or Democratic candidate John Kerry, whether their minds were made up, whether they had seen or heard any of the presidential campaign commercials in the last month, and the effect of each candidate's election on the economy and terrorism. Other topics addressed privacy issues associated with the use of supermarket customer loyalty cards, the controversy surrounding the death of Princess Diana of Wales, life on Mars, and outer space travel. Background information includes sex, age, religion, religiosity, marital status, education, ethnicity, household income, political party affiliation, political orientation, number of telephone lines in household, whether the respondent or a family member served in the United States armed forces, and voter registration and participation history.