Poll shows Arab Americans less keen on Bush

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette ^ | Saturday, March 13, 2004 | Ann McFeatters

[pittsburgh gop guy]

Poll shows Arab Americans less keen on Bush Saturday, March 13, 2004

By Ann McFeatters, Post-Gazette National Bureau

WASHINGTON -- President Bush appears to have lost significant support among Arab Americans, according to a new poll by Zogby International, an independent polling firm.

If the election were held now, John Kerry would get 54 percent of the vote among Arab Americans in Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Florida, four key battleground states in the Nov. 2 election. Bush lags far behind at 30 percent. Other candidates would get 5 percent of the vote. Eleven percent are undecided.

In 2000, Bush led his Democratic rival Al Gore among Arab Americans, winning 45 percent of their votes nationwide, compared to 38 percent voted for Gore and 13 percent for Ralph Nader. In the four battleground states, Bush did even better, winning 46 percent of Arab American votes, versus 29 percent for Gore and 13 percent for Nader.

James Zogby, who runs the Arab American Institute, which commissioned the poll from his brother, John Zogby, said Bush appears to be "in trouble" with Arab Americans.

California has the largest population of Arab Americans at about 600,000, but California is not considered a likely swing state. The 235,000 Arab Americans in Michigan make up 5 percent of total voters, the 120,000 in Florida and 85,000 in Ohio represent about 2 percent of each state's voters, and the 75,000 in Pennsylvania make up slightly more than 1.5 percent of the commonwealth's voters.

In 2000, Gore won Michigan and Pennsylvania by just over 200,000 votes in each state. Bush won Ohio by 165,000 votes, while Bush and Gore were virtually tied in Florida.

There are several reasons Bush has lost support among Arab Americans, according to the Zogby poll. He earned an 80 percent disapproval rating for his handling of the Israel-Palestine situation, 63 percent for restricting civil liberties among immigrants, 72 percent on health care, 65 percent on the environment, 75 percent on the economy, 72 percent on the Iraq war, 62 percent on foreign policy and 64 percent on taxes.

Arab American support for Kerry is not strong because many of his positions are unknown, which means Kerry still must sell himself to the Arab American community, Zogby said.

It is probably too late for Bush to do that, he said. Arab American support probably wounldn't increase for Bush, he said, even if Bush personally found Osama bin Laden and "arm-wrestled him to the ground."

[pittsburgh gop guy]

Go figure!

[Jorge]

Why should I believe any poll about Arab support for Bush from an anti-Bush Arab like Zogby?

Bush has freed millions of people in the Arab world from oppressive tyrants. They would admire Bush is they really cared for their fellow Arabs. But sadly they don't.

[Reagan Man]

James Zogby, who runs the Arab American Institute, which commissioned the poll from his brother, John Zogby...

The Zogby's have an agenda and it has nothing to do with reelecting PresBush either.

[Monty22]

Arabs could care less. They are about islam. Any 'freeing' of an islamic nation is a fundamental evil to them.

Duh.. I'm surprised 100% of arabs here aren't for kerry now.

[Mike Darancette]

Note to Arab Americans:

Kerry gets elected
Kerry lets guard down
Islamists do something bad in the US
Kerry lacks moral authority or will to protect Arab-Americans.
Innocents suffer.

[zarf]

KEEN??!

Did Rudy Vallee write this headline?

[river rat]

I'm convinced a parallel poll would show that Americans are less keen on Arabs...

I'm reaching the point of believing that large numbers of Arabs are ignoring, sheltering and/or supporting the militant lunatics within their midst.......thus, setting themselves up for problems downstream....

They are either setting themselves up for a game of "Cowboys and Arabs" or proving themselves unfit to live in Non-Islamic nations......


Semper Fi

[LdSentinal]

Poll also shows Hussein and Bin laden family less keen in Bush.

Uday and Qusay Hussein endorse John Kerry for president.

More on this developing news in a moment.

[Spruce]

F them

[blackbart.223]

"Poll shows Arab Americans less keen on Bush"

No sh*t? One more reason to vote for Bush.

[Jorge]

Arabs could care less. They are about islam. Any 'freeing' of an islamic nation is a fundamental evil to them.

If that's the case then who needs them?
They can expect to remain the same stunted third world nations of losers they are now.

[Reagan Man]

PresBush has made every effort to make sure Arab-American's and Muslim-American's aren't mistreated on his watch. And what does he get in return? A slap in the face. Trying to be the President of all American's, is a thankless job. I don't think its worth the effort.

[Cold Heat]

Go figure!

That's what I figured!

[Constitutionalist Conservative]

Zogby International, an independent polling firm.

Not independent when it comes to the War on Terror.

[Right_in_Virginia]

President Bush appears to have lost significant support among Arab Americans,

Mr. Zogby, what's the bad news?

[atomic conspiracy]

The SS weren't too keen on Roosevelt.

[dwills]

you turds might not get that freedom appeals to 90% of arabs, american or otherwise, and that they were split 50/50 like the rest of our populace for reasons having nothing to do with islamism

maybe bush lost a little support from the arab conservatives who visited free republic and caught wind of your stench

if you've got any conscience at all, could you imagine the reaction to your bile by even arab christians (which 75% of arab americans are)?

please, go back to the party of rednecks--republicans don't need the southern strategy anymore!

[Bush2004]

Arab American support probably wounldn't (sic) increase for Bush, he said, even if Bush personally found Osama bin Laden and "arm-wrestled him to the ground."

No surprise. Arab Americans are more Arab than American. Arab Americans are more Osama than Bush. Kerry is more Osama than America.

[Barnacle]

I'm looking for a headline that reads,

"Poll shows Arab Americans less keen on Terrorism".