A poll released Tuesday found little support for even a limited military strike against Iran.
Only 19% of voters would support President Donald Trump taking military action against the Iranian regime, according to a Hill-HarrisX survey taken June 22-23.
Trump nearly ordered missile strikes against Iran last week, but decided to halt the operation with 10 minutes to go. The president said he was concerned about incurring civilian casualties in retaliation for Iran shooting down an unmanned U.S. Navy drone.
U. S. President Donald Trump announces his candidacy for a second presidential term at the Amway Center on June 18th in Orlando, Florida, President Trump is set to run against a wide open Democratic field of candidates. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The poll found that 58% of voters believe that non-military action would be the best way to counter Iranian aggression. Forty-nine percent of respondents said negotiations between Iran and the U.S. should end the current standoff, while 9% advocated for no action at all. (RELATED: Jimmy Carter Gives Thumbs Up To Trump’s Decision Not To Attack Iran)
Almost a fifth of voters asked, 19%, had no idea what the Trump administration should do about the crisis.
Trump appears to be opting for cyberattacks against Iran, at least for now, and placed further “hard hitting” economic sanctions on the country Monday.
Over the weekend, he tweeted about the sanctions.
Iran cannot have Nuclear Weapons! Under the terrible Obama plan, they would have been on their way to Nuclear in a short number of years, and existing verification is not acceptable. We are putting major additional Sanctions on Iran on Monday …
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 22, 2019
The hawks in the Trump administration are represented by National Security Adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, both of whom are have taken a hard line against the Iranian regime. Fox News host and Daily Caller co-founder Tucker Carlson recently called Bolton “a bureaucratic tapeworm” for pushing for war with Iran. (RELATED: Report: John Bolton Says Iran Doesn’t Own A ‘Hunting License In The Middle East)
US National Security Advisor John Bolton grabs ear protectors during a flight over the Jordan Valley between the Israeli city of Beit Shean and the West Bank Palestinian city of Jericho on June 23, 2019. (Photo by ABIR SULTAN/AFP/Getty Images)
The poll did not find an extreme difference in the opinions of Democrats and Republicans towards military action against Iran, with 31% of GOP supporters supporting a missile strike or a war with Iran while 50% said a peaceful solution is desirable.
Democrats provided the lowest support for military action at 16%, while Independents registered 27% approval.
Seniors, those aged 65 and above, were most averse to conflict with Iran — 60% wanted negotiations, not war.
The Hill-HarrisX poll surveyed 1,001 registered voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points with a 95% confidence level.