In the first such poll released since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, a majority of Americans believe the U.S. government is not doing enough to control the nation’s borders and screen individuals who attempt to gain entry.
The Zogby International poll, released yesterday by the Center for Immigration Studies, indicates that an overwhelming majority of Americans believe the lack of border control make it easier for terrorists to enter the country. Those responding think a greater effort in controlling immigration would go a long way in preventing future terrorist assaults on the nation.
Of those polled, 76% believe the government is not doing enough to screen immigrants and visitors to the U.S. Just 19 percent said enough is being done. Results were not significantly different when broken down by ideology, with 83 percent of conservatives, 74 percent of liberals and 75 percent of moderates believing that enforcement is too lax.
Fully 85 percent of respondents felt that the current level of control over the nation’s borders contributes to the ability of terrorists to enter the country.
When asked if a dramatic increase in resources for border patrol functions would help reduce the risk of terrorism, 72 percent said yes. Twenty-four percent said more resources would have no impact.
“There are few issues on which Americans from a broad range of perspectives and backgrounds agree. A strong belief that enforcement of immigration laws and border controls has been too lax and that this contributed to the attacks of Sept. 11 appears to be one of them, ” said Steven Camarota, director of research for the Center for Immigration Studies. “These results don’t necessarily mean the public has turned against immigrants or even against immigration, but they do mean that the vast majority of Americans seem to feel that we have lost control of our borders. And it’s clear the public very much wants this to change.”
This nationwide poll of 1,018 likely voters was conducted from Sept. 15-16. The margin of error is +/-3.2 percent.
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