Poll: Most Support New TSA Measures

CBS News Poll analysis by the CBS News Polling Unit: Sarah Dutton, Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus and Anthony Salvanto.

CBS

In the wake of a Thanksgiving holiday season marked by concerns that the Transportation Security Administration has gone too far with its new security procedures, a new CBS News poll finds that most Americans do not object to full-body x-ray machines or thorough pat-downs by TSA employees.

Seventy-six percent say airports should use full-body digital x-ray machines to screen passengers - the very machines that spurred a "national opt-out day" last Wednesday from opponents of the new measures. Just 19 percent oppose use of the machines. Still, support for the machines has dropped slightly, from 81 percent three weeks ago.

Passengers who refuse the screenings or are selected for additional examination can be given so-called "enhanced" pat-downs by TSA employees, a situation that sparked criticism from those who said they did not want agents touching their "junk."

There is more opposition here - 40 percent of Americans, including 44 percent of women, say these pat-downs are too intrusive. But a majority of Americans - 57 percent - say they are not.

That said, most Americans don't want to be on the receiving end of a pat-down. Fifty-seven percent said they would be uncomfortable receiving one, including 27 percent who say they would be very uncomfortable. Women are most likely to say they would be uncomfortable.

Few Americans - just seven percent in the survey - say the new procedures have caused them to not fly or change their travel plans.

And despite claims from some that the new procedures are simply the latest example of "security theater," most Americans believe they are effective.

Thirty-six percent say they are "very effective" at stopping terrorism, and 47 percent say they are "somewhat effective." Just 15 percent say they are not very or not at all effective.

Americans are split on how far the government should go: 42 percent are more concerned that the government will fail to improve airport anti-terrorism measures, while 43 percent are more concerned that it will employ measures that go too far in invading the personal privacy.

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Read the Complete Poll

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This poll was conducted among a random sample of 1,067 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone November 29-December 2, 2010. Phone numbers were dialed from RDD samples of both standard land-lines and cell phones. The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups is higher.

This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

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Brian Montopoli is senior political reporter for CBSNews.com. You can read more of his posts here. Follow Hotsheet on Facebook and Twitter.

[abhorlibs]

How can the TSA be effective if the man who briefs the "president" on security has no clue what is going on? obamao's Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, during a television interview taped Monday, appeared unaware of a major set of terror arrests in Great Britain that morning.

Clapper appeared alongside two other top U.S. security officials on ABC News, in an interview that aired Tuesday. He was asked directly by Diane Sawyer about the arrests of 12 men allegedly involved in an Al Qaeda-inspired plot to attack shops and other targets in Britain.

"First of all, London. How serious is it? Any implication that it was coming here?" Sawyer asked.

Clapper was silent for several seconds, then quietly turned his head and said, "London?"

Kinda makes you feel all warm and fuzzy about this White House huh?

[cardamom1]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qwsdq69AHnw
Thank you Ron Paul

[cardamom1]

TSA Total Sexual Assault

[BBFmail]

Bill O'Reilly did a poll of over 15,000 persons versus the 1067 polled by CBS. His results were very different from the CBS poll...which makes me think that CBS polled all TSA supervisors and employees.

http://www.billoreilly.com/poll-center


TSA screenings

November 22, 2010


Are the new "enhanced" TSA screening procedures effective?

Yes, they're worth the inconvenience 22%
No, they're all for show 78%


15645 total votes Poll closed on November 29, 2010

--

So...12203 "jusrt saidf NO". Why the difference????

[MC1775]

"...most Americans believe they are effective."

This has only given those "most Americans" a false sense of security. The article fails to mention the fact that only a small percentage of travelers are RANDOMLY selected to go through the body scanners, and an even smaller percentage of that recieve the patdowns. 19 hijackers caused the 9/11 attacks. Under the random selection process that the TSA is using, if another 19 terrorists lined up and went through security, only one of them would be singled out for enhanced screening, but the other 18 in the line in front or behind him will be able to board thier flights and accomplish thier mission. But if a profiling process was used, all 19 of them standing in line with each other will recieve the enhanced screening. This random selection is nonesense. Less than 3% of travelers recieve the enhanced pat down. It would seem that if profiling was done, all 3% recieving the pat downs would be high risk or suspicious travelers only.

[cardamom1]

Apparently the only "class" of citizens in this country who can bypass TSA's enhanced scanner and the pat downs are ...

http://floydreports.com/obama-gives-a-pass-tsa-wont-touch-muslims-junk/

[bhmike17]

I wonder why there is such a difference in polls. Might it be that CBS does not tell the people they are polling what the scanners do? That seemed to be the issue with the previous polls. Once the public were told their privacy was being violated they were against them.

I'm also not sure how the public could know if the scanners were effective. How would they? Not sure why CBS is so set on backing the TSA. There must be something were not missing. Wouldn't think they would back the right wing like that.

[hortolanus]

I won't mind the Full Body Scanner as long as it's PRIVATE and only TSA officials have access to it.

[ccmdh465]

Polls like this are total BS. They could get results to say that most people believe Santa Claus was the underwear bomber if they worded the question right and asked the right people.

[nzmoores]

Rigged poll. Americans are fed up with TSA and the protests will continue. Especially the scrotum eggs. Cools Runnings! http://******/gRkkD2