Abuse photos harden US war divide

It has become commonplace to observe the sharp polarization of the electorate in the 2004 campaign. But that is playing out even in public reaction to the scandal over the American abuse of some detainees in Iraq's Abu Ghraib prison.

Most Americans say they are dismayed by the abuse of Iraqi detainees that recently came to light. But new polling data, along with street interviews in the US, show that overall opinion toward the war and the Bush administration's performance has not shifted dramatically - despite the abhorrent images and warnings from Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld that there are more to come, plus video.

The scandal is "hardening opinion, on both sides," says independent pollster John Zogby. "If there's any movement at all, it's probably in declining enthusiasm for the war among supporters, but not a lack of support. Meanwhile, on the other hand, it is probably hardening opposition to the war."

Mr. Zogby's polling shows that the portion of likely voters reporting "strong opposition" to the war is now at 35 percent, up from 26 to 27 percent in the summer of 2003.

But, the latest polling shows, President Bush and Secretary Rumsfeld have so far escaped the brunt of public scorn for the actions of some of the Americans in charge of detaining and interrogating Iraqis. A Washington Post/ABC News poll released Saturday found that 69 percent of Americans believe Rumsfeld should not lose his job. A plurality of Americans, 48 percent, approve of Bush's response to the scandal, while 35 percent disapprove.

The Bush administration, after putting out word last week that the president had privately scolded Rumsfeld for his handling of the situation, is now closing ranks around the defense secretary. Vice President Dick Cheney's spokesman put out the word that "people ought to let [Rumsfeld] do his job."

But the public is still processing Rumsfeld's testimony Friday before both the Senate and House armed services committees, in which he offered his "deepest apology" for the first time over the abuses against Iraqis and promised justice.

Rochelle Davis, a young African-American woman working at a massage booth at the Raleigh State Fairground Flea Market on Saturday, says the scandal has crystallized her opposition to the Bush administration.

"If we're going to start getting rid of people, we should start with the president of the United States and let it trickle down," says Ms. Davis.

Like many of the buyers, sellers, and barterers at the busy market, Ms. Davis has paid close attention to the unfolding abuse scandal in Iraq, including watching some of Friday's testimony on TV. Despite efforts to punish the wrongdoers at Abu Ghraib and apologies from the president, Rumsfeld, and other top administration officials, Ms. Davis sees a larger trend.

"[The prisoner scandal] is a microcosm of what's going on in that administration and their lack of control over the situation," says Ms. Davis. "Americans are starting to see similarities between this war and Vietnam."

Ultimately, she continues, the debacle has done much to shake America's moral position on "freeing" Iraq - an inevitable decline, in her eyes. "What the world is seeing now is that we can be as bad as anyone else," she says. "I think we've underestimated [the insurgency's ability to fight] and we're going to pay for it."

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