WASHINGTON — Just over half of Americans say torture is at least sometimes justified to thwart terrorist attacks, and the country is evenly divided over whether to close the Guantanamo Bay prison, according to a poll that underscores President Barack Obama’s challenges in selling his terrorism-fighting policies.
Even so, the latest Associated Press-GfK survey also shows that Obama enjoys broad confidence that he can effectively handle terrorism in an era when many people say they still fear becoming a victim and when a swath of the public shares the views of Obama’s Republican predecessor, George W. Bush.
At the same time, Obama hasn’t lost support — he has a 64 percent job-approval rating — and nearly half of Americans still think the country is headed in the right direction. That’s despite bipartisan rebukes of the new president’s ordered closure of the detention center in Cuba and former Vice President Dick Cheney’s sustained criticism of Obama’s approach to terrorism.
The issues emerged in the poll as intensely partisan, with viewpoints largely split along ideological lines.
The AP-GfK poll shows most Americans have faith in him, with 70 percent saying they are confident in Obama’s ability to address terrorism. Nearly all Democrats, two-thirds of independents and just over a third of Republicans express confidence.
Fifty-two percent of people say torture can be at least sometimes justified to obtain information about terrorist activities from suspects, an increase from 38 percent in 2005, when AP last asked the question. More than two-thirds of Republicans say torture can be justified compared with just over a third of Democrats.
Leading the charge by Republicans against Obama’s policies is Cheney. The poll shows nearly a quarter had a favorable opinion of the former vice president, a measure up from a low of 13 percent in a 2007 poll.
