Foreign Aid: Yes, No and Maybe
Americans have historically been skeptical about foreign aid. Most respond favorably to humanitarian initiatives and Americans give the U.S. high marks for helping other countries when natural disasters strike. Yet, majorities say the U.S. should concentrate on problems at home. A majority of Americans also say the U.S. spends too much on foreign aid - this is an area where public attitudes can be uncertain or ill informed. For example, half of Americans mistakenly believe we spend more on international aid than we do on Medicare and Social Security. In addition, survey questions on foreign aid often elicit double-digit "don't know" responses - a warning sign that an issue may not be well understood and public attitudes may not be stable. For instance, Americans are divided and many say they "don't know" when questions refer to spending U.S. dollars to combat HIV/AIDS in developing nations.
Americans have historically been skeptical about foreign aid. Most respond favorably to humanitarian initiatives and Americans give the U.S. high marks for helping other countries when natural disasters strike. Yet, majorities say the U.S. should concentrate on problems at home. A majority of Americans also say the U.S. spends too much on foreign aid - this is an area where public attitudes can be uncertain or ill informed. For example, half of Americans mistakenly believe we spend more on international aid than we do on Medicare and Social Security. In addition, survey questions on foreign aid often elicit double-digit "don't know" responses - a warning sign that an issue may not be well understood and public attitudes may not be stable. For instance, Americans are divided and many say they "don't know" when questions refer to spending U.S. dollars to combat HIV/AIDS in developing nations.
- About half of Americans mistakenly believe we spend more on foreign aid than on Medicare and Social Security
- Americans are divided on whether the U.S. spends enough to combat HIV/AIDS in developing countries, but six in 10 say ...
- Americans give the U.S. the highest marks for helping other countries when natural disasters strike
- Majorities say the U.S. is doing more than its share of helping less fortunate countries and we should focus on problems at home
- Most Americans favor specific types of aid such as food and medical assistance, but more than half say ...
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