Another Bunch of Trade Polls

The table below lists 20 polls of U.S. adults or voters from the first half of 2008 that asked questions about about trade.   This follows up on a similar table I prepared for 2007:  What did Americans think about trade in 2007.

The survey doesn't include polls dealing with related issues such as foreign direct investment, immigration, the Federal budget deficit, and so on.  This is not a complete list of surveys, but includes what I was able to find during a relatively brief period of time.  The list only includes polls that had relatively detailed summaries of results available on the Internet.  I probably haven't found all relevant polls, or even necessarily all the important ones.  I often searched poll results looking only for the key word "trade" and thus may have missed relevant questions, or polls that had relevant questions.  For example, questions framed using other words, such as "globalization," might have be underrepresented. 

 

Organization	Target	Survey period	Release date (press release date if possible)	Hyperlink to results	Notes
BBC	U.S. adults (over 18)	Dec 4-Jan 11	Feb 7	Widespread Unease about Economy and Globalization - Global Poll	An international survey of  about 34,500 persons in 34 countries.  In about half the countries the survey was nationwide, in about half limited to major urban areas.  Only a few questions: are things getting better or worse; is globalization going too fast; is it unfair?  Little in the way of cross tabs or demographic background.   In the U.S. majorities felt economic conditions were getting worse, and that globalization was proceeding too quickly.
Pew Research Center	U.S. adults (over 18)	January 9-13	January 24	Election-Year Economic Ratings Lowest Since '92	37% of Republicans and of Democrats identified "Dealing with global trade" as a top national priority.  Out of 21 issues identified, 16 were ranked higher.  See post on this poll:  How does the American public prioritize trade issues?  (The Custom-House, January 30, 2008)
Fortune	U.S. adults	January 14-16	January 25	America sours on free trade   Poll results	Over 2/3rds of respondents believe other countries benefit more from trade with the U.S. than the U.S. does, and almost 2/3rds say that the growth in trade has made things worse for the U.S., although the percentage drops considerably when they are asked if it has made them personally worse off.  Respondents identify sending jobs overseas as a significant cause of economic slowdown. Poll goes on to ask a number of questions about respondents preferred policy responses, although the phrasing of many of these questions is inflammatory
Rasmussen	U.S. adults	January 15, 18	January 22	Americans Say Auto Industry Important, Foreign Companies Good for the Economy	Majority says its good for the economy when auto companies open plants in the U.S.; pluralities favor subsidies for U.S. made autos and oppose tariffs on foreign autos.
LA Times/Bloomberg	U.S. Adults	January 18-22	January 24	Public Predicts Recession	5% of respondents think that if the nation falls into recession, the trade deficit will be the most important cause; 8% think the fall of the dollar would be responsible.
Pew Research Center; Princeton Survey Research Associates International	U.S. adults (18 and over)	Jan 30-Feb 2	February 14	Economic Discontent Deepens as Inflation Concerns Rise	Public concern over the state of the economy was rising rapidly; a significant number of respondents thought multinational corporations shared a great deal of the blame.  See post on this poll: Who do American Adults Blame for Their Economic Troubles?
Rasmussen	Likely Democratic Primary  voters	February 25	February 26	Clinton Lead Slipping in Ohio	"Just 16% of Likely Democratic Primary Voters believe the North American Free Trade Agreement—NAFTA—is good for America. Fifty-five percent (55%) say the trade agreement negotiated by the Clinton Administration is bad for the nation.   "By a 53% to 14% margin, voters believe that Obama opposes NAFTA while there are mixed perceptions on where Clinton stands. Thirty-five percent (35%) believe she favors NAFTA, 31% believe she opposes it and 34% are not sure. This issue is critical in a state that has lost thousands of manufacturing jobs. Politically, these lower-income voters have generally been supportive of Clinton throughout the primary season. "
Rasmussen	Likely Ohio Democratic primary voters	Feb 28	Feb 29	Ohio: Clinton 47% Obama 45%	"Just 16% of Likely Democratic Primary Voters believe the North American Free Trade Agreement—NAFTA—is good for America. Fifty-five percent (55%) say the trade agreement negotiated by the Clinton Administration is bad for the nation. Those numbers are unchanged over the past week.   "Ohio voters still tend to see Obama as opposed to NAFTA while Clinton’s position is less clear. The current survey finds that 58% believe Obama opposes NAFTA, up from 53% before the Tuesday night debate. Seventeen percent (17%) believe the Illinois Senator favors that trade agreement.   "For Clinton, 34% believe she favors NAFTA, little changed since the debate. However, 38% now believe she opposes that agreement, up from 31% in the previous survey. "   Here's the transcript of the Tuesday, February 26, debate in Cleveland: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/26/us/politics/26text-debate.html?pagewanted=all
Mason-Dixon Polling and Research	Likely Democratic voters in Ohio and Texas	Feb 27-29	March 3	Nafta Bashing Ends at Texas Line	13% of likely Democratic voters in Ohio, but 33% in Texas, approve of NAFTA.  59% disapprove in Ohio and 40% in Texas.
Rasmussen	Likely voters	Feb 27-28	Mar 2	Obama Trusted on Health Care and Education, McCain on Trade Agreements	"McCain has the advantage when it comes to negotiating trade agreements. Fifty percent (50%) trust McCain to handle those discussions while 43% trust Obama. The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been a significant issue in the Democratic race, particularly in Ohio."
NBC News/Wall Street Journal	Registered voters	Mar 7-10, 2008	March 12	NBC News/Wall Street Journal Survey	58% think its bad that the American economy has become increasingly global because it has subjected American companies and employees to unfair competition and cheap labor.  25% think globalization is good because it has opened up new markets for American products and resulted in more jobs.  61% say they have been affected at least somewhat by the impact of trade agreements on U.S. jobs (question doesn't distinguish whether impact was positive or adverse.
NYT/CBS	Adults	Mar 28-Apr 2	Apr 3	Weak Economy Sours Public’s View of Future, New Poll Finds   Poll   How the Poll Was Conducted	Blog post on these results on April 3: Do People Think Trade Is Good, or Bad?
LA Times/Bloomberg	Likely Democratic primary voters in Indiana, Pennsylvannia, and North Carolina	April 10-14	April 16	Democratic voters warm to government bailouts	Majorities of likely Democratic primary voters in Indiana, Pennsylvannia, and North Carolina all felt that free international trade has hurt the economy.
Pew Research Center	Adults	Apr 23-27	May 1	Obama's Image Slips, His Lead Over Clinton Disappears	Blog post at The Customs-House on May 14: Bad News About U.S. Trade Opinion
Pew Research Center	Adults	March 17 to April 21	June 12	Global Economic Gloom - China and India Notable Exceptions	Survey of 1,000 adults in each of 24 nations.  Did blog post on this:Actual Enthusiasm for Trade  on June 12
LA Times/Bloomberg	Adults	May 1 to May 8	May 13	Feels Like a Recession That Won't Improve Any Time Soon	Half of adults felt that free international trade had hurt the economy; about a quarter felt that it had helped.  Majorities of those with incomes below $100,000 felt that it had hurt; only about a third with incomes in excess of $100,000 felt that it had hurt.  Majorities in the east, midwest, and south felt that it had hurt; something just over a third of those in the west felt that it had hurt.  Neither the trade deficit or immigration, are seen as the greatest threats to U.S. prosperity over the next five years, however jobs leaving the U.S. was the third most often mentioned issue.  Report provides comparative information from Spring 2007 showing deterioration in support for trade in 2008.
Wall Street Journal/NBC	Adults	June 6-9		NBC News/Wall Street Journal Survey	Trade is prioritized relatively low on a list of policy areas where the U.S. needs new direction.
Rasmussen	Likely U.S. voters	June 12-13	June 20	56% Want NAFTA Renegotiated, Americans Divided on Free Trade	"Voters… seem to share Obama’s ambivalence. Thirty-four percent (34%) say free trade is good for the U.S. economy, but 36% say it is not. Thirteen percent (13%) say neither is true, and 18% are undecided. Republicans narrowly believe free trade is good (41% to 33%), Democrats narrowly believe it is bad, and unaffiliated voters are evenly divided….   At the same time, over half (54%) believe free trade agreements take jobs away from Americans, while only 23% believe U.S. jobs are created. Ten percent (10%) say neither, and 13% aren’t sure.   Perhaps most importantly, 71% say negotiation of trade agreements is important to them in terms of how they will vote. Only 20% say it is not important. "
Rasmussen	Likely U.S. voters	June 16	June 20	56% Want NAFTA Renegotiated, Americans Divided on Free Trade   Toplines - Free Trade - June 16, 2008	56% would like to see renegotiation of NAFTA.  Compare to similar survey in October 2007.  Five questions in survey.  Topline provided with detailed story.
CNN/Opinion Research Corporation	U.S. adults	June 26-29	July 1	Poll: Majority against free trade   International Trade / Global Economy	The percentage of persons who saw trade as a threat to the U.S. economy rose from 45% in October 2007 to 51% in June 2008.  That also compares to 35% in 2000.

 

For more posts on opinion about trade in the U.S.: Public Opinion; for a collection of trade polls for 2007: What did Americans think about trade in 2007?