Military Times Polls
Troops sound off
Military Times Poll finds high

morale, but less support for Bush, war effort
By Gordon Trowbridge
Times staff writer

Support for President Bush and

for the war in Iraq has slipped significantly in the last year among members of the military’s professional core, according to

the 2005 Military Times Poll.

Approval of the president’s Iraq policy fell 9 percentage points from 2004; a bare majority,

54 percent, now say they view his performance on Iraq as favorable. Support for his overall performance fell 11 points, to 60 percent,

among active-duty readers of the Military Times newspapers. …

Positive feelings about Congress, civilian and uniformed

Pentagon leaders and the media all fell. …

While roughly a third of Americans describe themselves as Democrats, just 13

percent of Military Times Poll respondents do so. …

Kohn said he worried that asking such questions of military members

and publishing the results could tarnish the military’s image as a nonpartisan institution.

The poll “tends to communicate to the

American people that the military is just like any other interest group,” Kohn said. “We want the public image of the military to be

decidedly apolitical.”

Military Times Polls
Disconnect cited

between troops, civilian leadership
By Gordon Trowbridge
Times staff writer

From Congress to the White House to the

Pentagon, the career-oriented heart of the military appears increasingly estranged from its leaders in Washington,

according to results of the 2005 Military Times Poll.

The poll of active-duty subscribers to the Military Times newspapers also

shows continued disdain for the media and a belief that the military’s prestige may have slipped in the eyes of

civilians. …

58 percent agreed that President Bush had their best interests at heart, down 11 percentage points from a year ago.

…

Congress saw the most dramatic drop: Just 31 percent agreed Congress looked out for their best interests, less than half the

number a year ago. …

David Segal, an expert in military sociology at the University of Maryland , said the results mirror a

similar estrangement between civilian Americans and their political leaders.

“I see military attitudes converging with

civilian non-elite attitudes,” which show fewer Americans believing that political leaders are looking out for their interests.