Republicans, Independents Make the Difference in Support for Obama on Afghanistan

Republicans and independents are the key forces in forging a narrow majority of Americans who support President Obama's strategy for Afghanistan, but on many other fronts, the president's approval ratings and backing for some of his key initiatives have been on the slide, according to a New York Times/CBS News poll conducted Dec. 4-8.

Fifty-one percent approve of Obama's decision to send 30,000 additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan while 43 percent disapprove, with 6 percent undecided.

Democrats oppose the troop increase by 53 percent to 42 percent, while Republicans support it by 68 percent to 27 percent; independents are split, but favor it by a higher margin (48 percent to 45 percent) than Democrats.

Fifty-five percent said Obama was wrong to announce a timetable for starting to bring troops home in July 2011 while 41 percent said it was a good idea.

The results of the poll reinforce what other recent polls have been showing for a while now: a president struggling under the weight of an enormous range of front-burner issues and a public which -- whether they are pro or con -- doesn't believe that initiatives on health care, Afghanistan and the economy will make things better.

Although Obama and congressional Democrats have now spent months focusing on health care reform, 47 percent of Americans named jobs or the economy as the most important issue facing the country today, compared to 12 percent who named health care. Two percent cited Afghanistan. That was in line with a Bloomberg poll released Wednesday that said the public ranks the economy as the most important issue facing the country by a more than 2-to-1 margin over health care reform.

Forty-seven percent of Americans approve of the way Obama is handling the economy, compared to 43 percent who don't, with 10 percent undecided, which is his lowest mark on that issue since taking office. Fifty percent disapprove of the way he is handling health care, compared to 42 percent who approve, with 7 percent undecided.

On Afghanistan, 48 percent approve of the way Obama is handling the situation while 38 percent do not, with 14 percent undecided.

Sixty percent think the war in Afghanistan is going somewhat or very badly, compared to 30 percent who think it is going somewhat or very well (only 1 percent said "very well").

Fifty-seven percent are only willing to see U.S. troops remain in Afghanistan for up to two more years. Twenty-six percent back keeping them there as long as it takes to succeed.

As in the Bloomberg poll, most favored spending cuts in other government programs as the way to offset the costs of the escalation in Afghanistan.

In the wake of his speech at West Point on the new Afghan strategy, 47 percent say Obama has not clearly explained his strategy, while 42 percent say he has, with 11 percent undecided.

Though many other national polls have Obama dipping under 50 percent when it comes to how many Americans approve of his job performance, the Times/CBS News survey has him right at 50 percent, which is his lowest mark in this poll since he became president. Last month, 53 percent approved of the way he was doing his job. In June, 63 percent approved. As other polls have shown, this one reveals Obama having difficulties with independents, who, compared to his overall approval rating, grade him positively by 43 percent to 41 percent.

Mirroring other polls, 56 percent believe the country is on the wrong track, compared to 37 percent who say it is on the right one, with 7 percent undecided. That's somewhat higher than in September but lower than the 68 percent CBS News found in its polls at the beginning of Obama's presidency.