Wash. Post apparently invented polling data
to suggest little support for Murtha's Iraq proposal
Media Matters
December 8, 2005
Summary: The Washington Post reported that House Democratic Leader Nancy
Pelosi adopted "a position that polls show most Americans do not support" when
she backed Rep. John Murtha's Iraq withdrawal proposal. However, a review of
recent polling data found no polls that asked whether respondents support
Murtha's proposal to withdraw troops "at the earliest practicable date," or on
his estimate that it should take six months to do so.
Washington Post staff writers Jim VandeHei and Shalaigh Murray reported in a
December 7 article that House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) adopted "a
position that polls show most Americans do not support" when she voiced her
support for Rep. John P. Murtha's (D-PA) Iraq withdrawal proposal. VandeHei and
Murray provided no support for their assertion about polling data, nor
apparently is such support available. A Media Matters for America review of
polling data did not identify any polls that asked whether respondents support
withdrawing U.S. troops "at the earliest practicable date" -- as Murtha's
resolution (House Joint Resolution 73) stated -- or within the six-month
timeframe Murtha suggested was a "reasonable" estimate for how long it would
take if his resolution were enacted.
As Media Matters has documented, at a November 17 press conference, Murtha
described his resolution as an "immediate redeployment of U.S. troops
consistent with the safety of U.S. forces to create a quick reaction force in
the region, to create an over-the-horizon presence of Marines, and to
diplomatically pursue security and stability in Iraq." Asked by a reporter "how
long that would be," Murtha responded, "you have to do it in a very consistent
way, but I think six months would be a reasonable time to get them out of
there."
It is unclear whether Pelosi supports Murtha's estimate of withdrawing all
U.S. troops within six months, or just the resolution's broader aim to do so as
soon as is "practicable." In either event, while polls have asked questions
such as whether respondents would support withdrawing U.S. troops now or in 12
months, and whether respondents generally support or oppose a timetable for
withdrawal, Media Matters found no evidence of polling data that included
Murtha's proposal -- "at the earliest practicable date" -- or his six-month
estimated timetable as answer options to when troops should be withdrawn.
As Media Matters has previously noted, conservative media figures have
distorted Murtha's proposal by conflating it with a Republican-sponsored
resolution that was summarily rejected on the House floor. That resolution --
reportedly intended as a "political trap" for Democrats -- contrasted with
Murtha's resolution in that it proposed "the deployment of United States forces
in Iraq be terminated immediately."
From the December 7 Washington Post article:
Despite Pelosi's claims that she echoes the views of most members in her
caucus, plenty of Democrats are cringing at her new high profile on an Iraq
withdrawal. Not only did she back a position that polls show most Americans do
not support, but she also did this when Bush is trying to move off the
defensive by accusing Democrats of supporting a de facto surrender.
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