The Latest Poll: SOS for GOP?

It's not just the Foley matter that is troubling for Republicans in the new CBS News/New York Times poll, but it is also what has happened in terms of public awareness and support for the war in Iraq and the campaign against terrorism.

The latest CBS News/New York Times poll was conducted before the news of North Korea's possible nuclear test – which could change the focus of the public from the Republicans' troubles in Congress to national security. You might expect that to be good news for the Republicans, coming so close to the mid-term elections. But right now the public's view of how the Administration and the Republican Party is handling security issues is low.

In this poll, 66% of Americans said things were going badly for the U.S. in Iraq – an all-time high – and clearly reflects the latest bad news from the ground and in the latest intelligence reports. Only 30% approved of the way the President is handling the situation there. So when we asked which party would be more likely to make the right decisions about the war in Iraq, the public gives Democrats an 11-point lead, up from a 5-point edge a month ago.

But the Republicans and the President have lost much of their advantage on homeland security, too. Fewer than half the public approves of how the President is handling the campaign against terrorism – something that has rarely been the case since the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001. And when asked which party was more likely to make the right decisions "when it comes to dealing with terrorism," the Republicans had no advantage. 41% chose the Republicans, while just about the same percentage, 40%, chose the Democrats.

And here's a pair of questions that are directly about this year's elections – what people think would happen to the terrorist threat if the Democrats take control of Congress – or the Republicans keep control. In each case, just about two-thirds of Americans think it wouldn't make any difference at all, suggesting that at least as far as now, Republicans haven't succeeded in making their security arguments to Americans stick.