Israel Matzav

More Israelis buying Obama propaganda?

A new Smith poll says that 24% of Israelis now believe that President Hussein Obama is 'more pro-Israel.' But 60% still describe him as 'more pro-'Palestinian'' or neutral.

Asked whether the Obama administration is more pro- Israel, more pro-Palestinian or neutral, 24% said more pro- Israel, 24% said more pro-Palestinian, 36% said neutral and 16% did not express an opinion.

Israelis’ views on the Obama administration varied significantly based on where they place themselves on the political map. Those who consider themselves left-wing were more likely to call the administration more pro-Israel, while right-wing Israelis were more likely to perceive it as more pro-Palestinian.

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The question was exactly the same as in six other Smith Research polls conducted for the Post since May 2009. In that first poll, 31% predicted that the Obama administration would be more pro-Israel and 14% said more pro-Palestinian.

The next poll was taken less than a month later, following the first White House meeting between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Obama and the American president’s landmark speech to the Muslim world in Cairo. It found a huge shift, with the proportion calling the Obama administration more pro-Palestinian rising from 14% to 50% and the proportion calling it more pro-Israel falling from 31% to only 6%.

Those calling the Obama presidency more pro-Israel than pro-Palestinian fell in August 2009 to a low point of 4% and rose to 9% in March 2010, 10% in July 2010, and 12% in May 2011, the most recent previous Smith Research poll on the issue.

Let's keep this in perspective: Imagine if this poll had been taken during the Bush or Clinton administrations. I'd bet that the 'pro-Palestinian' would be under 10%, and pro-Israel at 50% or higher.

Oh yes, and this poll represents a huge drop since September 2011:

In September 2011, the same question was asked in a survey sponsored by this newspaper that was conducted by a different pollster who used different methods. Keevoon Strategies took the poll immediately after Obama delivered what was considered a very pro-Israel address to the United Nations General Assembly and blocked an effort by the Palestinians to persuade the UN to unilaterally declare a Palestinian state along the 1949 armistice lines.

That poll found that the percentage of Israelis who considered the Obama administration more pro-Israel than pro-Palestinian was 54%.

Hmmm.

Labels: Barack Hussein Obama, Campaign 2012, Israeli polls

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:06 PM