In Face of Casualties, Bush Has Hard Sell on Iraq [View All]

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http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20031015/us_nm/iraq_usa_polls_dc&cid=1896&ncid=1480

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush's attempt to persuade Americans that things are going better in Iraq than they think is doomed to failure as long as U.S. troops continue dying there, public opinion experts say.

"It has no prospect of succeeding. What people look at above all is the casualty count," said Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center. "Making the case that some things are going well in Iraq is an important thing to do but it won't take the sting out of these death reports."

Nearly 100 U.S. personnel have been killed in Iraq since Bush declared an end to major combat five months ago. During that time, polls have shown an unmistakable trend.

In ABC/Washington Post surveys, voters have been asked whether U.S. casualties were acceptable or unacceptable. In early April, 66 percent said the death toll to that point was acceptable. By mid-July, support was down to 44 percent. In the latest poll last week, it fell to 38 percent, with 59 percent saying the casualty rate was unacceptable.

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