A majority of Americans believe that the US war against Iran has gone too far, and many are concerned about rising fuel prices, according to a poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
The AP-NORC poll, conducted between March 19 and 23 among 1,150 adults, found that while President Donald Trump’s overall approval rating remains stable, the conflict could quickly become a major political issue for his Republican administration.
About 59% of Americans say that the US military action in Iran was excessive. Meanwhile, 45% are “extremely” or “very concerned” about not being able to afford gasoline in the coming months—an increase of 15 points compared to a poll conducted just after Trump’s re-election.
There is broad support for at least one of Trump’s arguments—preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons—with roughly two-thirds of Americans saying it is an “extremely” or “very important” foreign policy goal. However, a large share of the public prioritizes keeping oil and gas prices stable, a rare issue uniting Republicans and Democrats.
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Three-quarters of Republicans and about two-thirds of Democrats say it is “extremely important” to prevent fuel prices from rising in the US.
Regarding Trump’s performance, nearly half of Americans continue to approve of him, but satisfaction with his foreign policy is lower. Many remain concerned about his ability to make correct decisions on the use of military force abroad and largely oppose more aggressive measures, such as deploying ground troops.
Removing Iran’s leaders is viewed as a less important objective. Only about 3 in 10 consider it “very important” for the US to replace the Iranian government, while a majority say that US intervention in the Middle Eastern country has gone too far.
While Trump has sent mixed signals on whether the war will end soon, about 9 in 10 Democrats and roughly 6 in 10 independents believe the attacks on Iran “went too far.” Republicans are somewhat divided, with about half saying the military action was “appropriate” but fewer than two in ten believing it has gone too far.
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Opposition to sending US troops to fight in Iran is nearly equal across parties: about 6 in 10 Americans oppose it “somewhat” or “strongly.”
