Israel Matzav

Rasmussen: Most Americans favor defending Israel, four others

Rasmussen Reports has done a survey in which Americans were given a list of 18 countries and asked which of them the United States should defend in the event of attack. Only five countries topped the 50% mark. Israel was one of them.

In first place in terms of countries America should assist is Canada. Seventy-eight percent (78%) favor aiding our northern neighbor in the event of an attack, and just 16% disagree.

Next comes Great Britain, but then it’s been more than two centuries since America fought its way free of the Mother Country. Seventy-three percent (73%) think the United States should provide military help for Britain if it is attacked, but nearly one-in-five Americans (18%) are against such assistance.

Tied for third are Mexico and Israel, each with 59% support in the event of an attack. Twenty-eight percent (28%) oppose helping our neighbor to the south, and 13% are unsure. Similarly, 29% don’t think American should help Israel militarily, while 12% are undecided.

Forty-nine percent (49%) of Americans said in May that if Israel attacked Iran over the latter’s nuclear weapons program, the United States should help Israel.

Germany came in 5th with 53% in favor, 33% against and 14% unsure.

The only other two countries where a plurality (but not a majority) favored military assistance were Japan (46% in favor, 41% opposed and 13% undecided) and France (45% in favor, 37% opposed and 18% undecided). That's an improvement for France. In 2006, only 18% of Americans saw France as an ally in the war on terror.

For the other eleven countries, the number of people opposed to assistance exceeded those in favor.

Someone can go tell Nadav Tamir (pictured) that he was wrong again.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 4:24 PM