The mythical centre-ground
Last week I posted a short piece discussing where the political centre ground really lies in this country. I said that polls like the British Social Attitudes survey show that public opinion is to the left of the political classes on many significant issues, e.g. privatisation, taxation etc. When politicians and commentators talk about the centre-ground they’re plainly not including the views of the public in their assessment of the political spectrum, which seems odd in a democracy.
This week some new polling data was published indicating that this principle also applies to Foreign Policy, specifically with regards to our principal ally on the world stage; the United States. Again, views that are marginalised and disparaged in mainstream political debate are entirely commonplace amongst the general public.
According to a YouGov poll published in the Daily Telegraph, (results described here by AFP) “more than two-thirds who offered an opinion said America is essentially an imperial power seeking world domination. And 81 per cent of those who took a view said President George W Bush hypocritically championed democracy as a cover for the pursuit of American self-interests. Just one percent [rate George W. Bush] a "great leader" against 77 percent who deemed him a "pretty poor" or "terrible" leader.” US policy in Iraq was similarly derided, with only 24 percent saying they felt that the US military action there was helping to bring democracy to the country.”
Of course, opinion polls should always be approached with a degree of caution. One should look carefully at the way questions are framed, the sampling methodology, and other factors. YouGov have had their methods questioned in the past by more traditional polling organisations, but point out that their results in the run-up to the UK general election last year, for example, predicted the actual result far more accurately than those other organisations. However, in this particular instance, the results come down so decisively in one direction that even allowing a particularly generous margin of error would still show profound opposition to the way the US government conducts itself.
Recall that to Britain, US foreign policy is not the foreign policy of Bulgaria or the Philippines. In a number of key areas the Britain allows the US to dictate foreign policy to all intents and purposes. As the Royal Institute of International Affairs pointed our last year, Britain "has been conducting counter- terrorism policy 'shoulder to shoulder' with the US, not in the sense of being an equal decision-maker, but rather as a pillion passenger compelled to leave the steering to the ally in the driving seat". Foreign policy expert Michael MccGwire put it rather less delicately, describing Tony Blair as the “spear-carrier of the Pax Americana”.
The fact that views held by overwhelming numbers of people barely find expression in political debate, let alone the fact that these polling figures will come as a surprise to many people, says something stark and revealing about the quality of our democracy. Apparently those nations that declare themselves to be missionaries for democracy abroad demonstrate their devotion to these high ideals by defying the clear wishes of their own populations in the foreign policies they pursue.
This week some new polling data was published indicating that this principle also applies to Foreign Policy, specifically with regards to our principal ally on the world stage; the United States. Again, views that are marginalised and disparaged in mainstream political debate are entirely commonplace amongst the general public.
According to a YouGov poll published in the Daily Telegraph, (results described here by AFP) “more than two-thirds who offered an opinion said America is essentially an imperial power seeking world domination. And 81 per cent of those who took a view said President George W Bush hypocritically championed democracy as a cover for the pursuit of American self-interests. Just one percent [rate George W. Bush] a "great leader" against 77 percent who deemed him a "pretty poor" or "terrible" leader.” US policy in Iraq was similarly derided, with only 24 percent saying they felt that the US military action there was helping to bring democracy to the country.”
Of course, opinion polls should always be approached with a degree of caution. One should look carefully at the way questions are framed, the sampling methodology, and other factors. YouGov have had their methods questioned in the past by more traditional polling organisations, but point out that their results in the run-up to the UK general election last year, for example, predicted the actual result far more accurately than those other organisations. However, in this particular instance, the results come down so decisively in one direction that even allowing a particularly generous margin of error would still show profound opposition to the way the US government conducts itself.
Recall that to Britain, US foreign policy is not the foreign policy of Bulgaria or the Philippines. In a number of key areas the Britain allows the US to dictate foreign policy to all intents and purposes. As the Royal Institute of International Affairs pointed our last year, Britain "has been conducting counter- terrorism policy 'shoulder to shoulder' with the US, not in the sense of being an equal decision-maker, but rather as a pillion passenger compelled to leave the steering to the ally in the driving seat". Foreign policy expert Michael MccGwire put it rather less delicately, describing Tony Blair as the “spear-carrier of the Pax Americana”.
The fact that views held by overwhelming numbers of people barely find expression in political debate, let alone the fact that these polling figures will come as a surprise to many people, says something stark and revealing about the quality of our democracy. Apparently those nations that declare themselves to be missionaries for democracy abroad demonstrate their devotion to these high ideals by defying the clear wishes of their own populations in the foreign policies they pursue.
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