Thursday, April 22, 2010

Quinnipiac poll: A Majority of the US voters disapprove Obama's handling of Israel

(CNN) - Only a third of Americans approve of the way President Obama's handling the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, according to a new national poll.

A Quinnipiac University survey released Thursday morning indicates that 35 percent of the public gives the president a thumbs up on how he's dealing with the situation between Israel and the Palestinians, with 44 percent saying they disapprove.

This stands in contrast with how Americans feel about Obama's overall handling of foreign policy, with 48 percent approving and 42 percent saying they disapprove.

According to the poll, two-thirds (67%) of Jewish voters disapprove of how the president's handling Israeli-Palestinian relations, with 28 percent saying they approve.

Two-thirds of people questioned in the survey say that the president should be a strong supporter of Israel but, by a 42 percent to 34 percent margin, voters say Obama's not a strong supporter of Israel.

Only 16 percent of Republicans and 33 percent of independents think the President is a strong supporter of Israel, while 53 percent of Democrats do. The wealthier and older the voter, the more likely they are to question Obama's support for Israel. And the racial gap is yawning: 31 percent of white voters, but 54 percent of black voters see him as a strong supporter of Israel.

American voters say 57 - 13 percent that their sympathies lie with Israel and say 66 - 19 percent that the President of the United States should be a strong supporter of Israel.