Poll: Undecided On Ashcroft

(CBS)  Although a majority of the public approves of President-elect George W. Bush's Cabinet appointments, the public is undecided about Bush's nominee for attorney general, former Sen. John Ashcroft.

The latest CBS News poll, conducted as Ashcroft's confirmation hearings were taking place, shows that most Americans aren't sure whether or not he should be confirmed by the Senate, and nearly six in ten have not yet formed an opinion of him.

Only one-quarter of Americans believe the Senate should confirm Ashcroft as attorney general. But public opinion is not against him, either; only 17 percent think he should not be confirmed, while 59 percent say they are not sure yet whether he should be confirmed or not.

SHOULD THE SENATE CONFIRM ASHCROFT?
	Yes	No	Not sure yet
	25%	17%	59%

Views about Ashcroft's confirmation vary according to religious beliefs, views on abortion and political philosophy in general.

Ashcroft receives his strongest support from Republicans, 48 percent of whom support his confirmation while only 5 percent oppose it. Among conservatives, members of the religious right and abortion opponents, his confirmation is supported by large margins. But even among these groups - his greatest supporters - nearly half say they aren't yet sure whether he should be confirmed.

Solid opposition to Ashcroft's confirmation among the public has yet to develop, however. Although opposition outweighs support among liberals and Democrats, nearly two-thirds in each group are taking a wait and see approach. The strongest opposition comes from those who support abortion rights: by more than two to one, those who believe abortion should be permitted in all cases oppose his confirmation. Support for his confirmation is also low among African-Americans, at just 5 percent. But more than two-thirds are not sure yet.

Overall views of Ashcroft are equally vague: 23 percent of the public has a favorable view of him, and 18 percent have an unfavorable view. But the majority – 59 percent - is undecided or has not heard enough about him yet.

BUSH'S CABINET
	Approve	Disapprove
	58%	19%

In general, Bush has public support on his Cabinet selections. Fifty-eight percent approve of the Cabinet appointments Bush has made, and 19 percent disapprove. Even Democrats and liberals, the groups most likely to oppose Ashcroft, are more likely to approve rather than disapprove of Bush's cabinet. African-Americans narrowly oppose Bush's cabinet, by 40 percent to 31 percent.

This poll was conducted by telephone January 15-17, 2001, among 1,086 adults nationwide. The error due to sampling could be plus or minus three percentage points for results based on the entire sample. Sampling error for subgroups may be higher.


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