Backgrounder: Is U.S. Troop Morale Slipping?
Council on Foreign Relations
Author: Lionel Beehner, Staff Writer
June 14, 2007
Introduction
With tours of duty extended and support for the Iraq war waning stateside, troop morale remains surprisingly high, military experts say. But that may be changing, as debate rages in Congress over funding the Iraq war and pulling out of what many analysts say is a worsening situation in Iraq. As Marine Lance Cpl. Jack Kessel recently told the Los Angeles Times: “How are we supposed to fight a war when people back home say we've already lost?” Recent polls indicate that service members favor more troops be sent to Iraq and repeated tours have taken their toll on soldiers’ mental health.
Sliding war approval ratings
Since it began in March 2003, support for the war—and President Bush’s handling of it—has been high among U.S. service members. In 2004, 83 percent of the U.S. military felt success in Iraq was a likely outcome. The previous year, 65 percent of the military believed that Iraq was a just war and that Saddam Hussein should be removed. Generally, U.S. troops remain supportive of President Bush, their commander in chief, and the larger war on terror. “They are determined to do their duty and get after al-Qaeda,” says a senior military official based in Iraq.
But those poll numbers have slipped in recent years as fatalities, which just passed 3,500, continue to climb and support for the war wanes among Americans. Troops have grown increasingly pessimistic about whether victory in Iraq is achievable, given the current troop levels and cycle of sectarian violence.
Read the rest of this article on the cfr.org website.
Copyright 2007 by the Council on Foreign Relations. This material is republished on GlobalSecurity.org with specific permission from the cfr.org. Reprint and republication queries for this article should be directed to cfr.org.
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