Pew report: Americans apprehensive about role in world
Military analyst: Trump lacks military insight 05:48
Washington (CNN)On
the international issues defining the 2016 election -- global trade,
foreign aid and national security -- new research shows that Americans
are divided and wary, split along ideological lines but generally
reluctant to engage with the world.
"The
public views America's role in the world with considerable apprehension
and concern," according to a Pew Research Center report on "America's Place in the World" released Thursday.
Significant
partisan splits remain: Democrats are more internationalist,
Republicans are more distrustful of the rest of the world, and both
sides rank threats differently. As the contentious 2016 presidential
primary has made clear, there are also disagreements between backers of
Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders.
But
majorities of Americans tend to favor reduced global engagement, and
supporters of presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump's
stand out for their animus toward globalization and free trade deals.
International economy
Almost
half -- 49% -- agree that "U.S. involvement in the global economy is a
bad thing because it lowers wages and costs jobs." Conversely, 44% say
it's a good thing "because it provides the U.S. with new markets and
opportunities for growth."
Opinions on the U.S. role in the global economy also elicit some of the widest partisan splits.
Trump
supporters hold the most negative view, with 65% saying American
involvement in the global economy is a bad thing. And 67% say they
oppose importing more goods from developing countries.
A
similar economic debate, playing out sharply on the campaign trail, can
be seen among supporters of the Democratic presidential candidates.
Over
half of Clinton voters (55%) think American involvement in the global
economy is a good thing (37% say it's bad). Sanders supporters, on the
other hand, are split 47% to 48% on whether it is good or bad. In
contrast to Trump backers, though, majorities of both camps support
importing more goods from developing countries.
Global threats
There
is some consensus among the public about the main global threats facing
the U.S., though sharp disagreement along party lines over their
relative importance, according to the Pew research.
Eighty
percent of Americans say ISIS is "a major threat to the well-being of
the United States" -- the top listed threat. Behind the terror group,
foreign cyberattacks (72%) and global economic instability (67%) are
ranked highest.
Beyond these threats, though, there is severe disagreement.
Climate
change is particularly divisive, with 77% of Democrats viewing it as a
"major threat" compared to just 26% of Republicans. And while Democrats
say it is the top global threat, Republicans rank it the lowest of eight
options in the survey.
On
refugees from Iraq and Syria, the assessment is nearly the opposite.
Seventy-four percent of Republicans say such refugees are a "major
threat," compared to only 40% of Democrats.
Again,
Trump backers stand out, with fully 85% identifying refugees as a
"major threat." Clinton and Sanders supporters are far less likely to
list refugees as "major threat," at 40% and 37% each.
Military spending
When
it comes to spending on the military, the Pew report found that 35% of
Americans favor an increase, while 24% want it decreased and 40% say it
should stay the same.
A huge gap
exists between Republicans and Democrats on the issue, with 61% of
Republicans favoring increased spending to just 20% of Democrats.
According to Pew, the partisan gap is 25 points higher than three years
ago.
Among supporters of the
remaining presidential contenders, Trump's backers favor boosting
defense spending the most (66%). Few Sanders supporters agree (25%),
while backers of Clinton are split, with 43% favoring an increase.
Foreign aid
The
Pew report also surveyed what the U.S. should do for other countries.
Though the U.S. spends less than one percent of annual GDP on foreign
aid, many think America should prioritize itself more.
Over
half of the public -- 57% -- say they want the U.S. "to deal with its
own problems," while just 37% say it should help other countries.
Additionally, 41% say "the U.S. does too much" to solve world problems, compared to 27% who say it does "too little."
The survey was conducted between April 12 and 19 among a national sample of 2,008 adults.
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