Publications

That’s the number of Americans who now say they favor “affirmative action programs to help blacks, women and other minorities get better jobs and education,” a 12-point increase since 1995, with support increasing among most demographic and political groups.

That’s the percentage of Americans who completely or mostly agree that American lives are worth more than the lives of people in other countries.

That’s the portion of the adult U.S. population who now say that school boards should have the right to fire teachers known to be homosexual; 66% disagreed. In 1987 when this question was first asked, a 51%-majority agreed with the statement.

That’s the proportion of Republicans who favor giving illegal immigrants the possibility of obtaining US citizenship; nearly as many within the party (46%) oppose such a move — an indication of the political difficulties that any compromise immigration plan will face on the road to enactment.

That’s the percentage of Americans who express a favorable view of the U.S. armed forces despite the general unpopularity of the ongoing war in Iraq. This large vote of confidence stands in contrast to the relatively low esteem in which the military were held during the similarly unpopular Vietnam War.