Most Americans credit Trump with al-Baghdadi raid: poll

A majority of Americans say President Trump should get credit for the raid that killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, though the successful operation did not budge how people view Trump’s strength as a leader, according to a new Washington Post–ABC News poll.

The survey found that 54 percent of Americans said Trump should get a “great deal” or “some” credit for al-Baghdadi’s death. The terrorist leader was killed in a raid in northwest Syria over the weekend when he ran into a dead-end tunnel and detonated a suicide vest, according to U.S. officials.

No U.S. troops were killed or injured in the operation.

{mosads}Trump receives credit across the political spectrum for ordering the raid, with nearly 40 percent of Democrats, just more than 50 percent of independents and more than 70 percent of Republicans in the poll all saying the president should be acknowledged for the successful raid.

However, Americans expressed skepticism as to the aftermath of the operation — 54 percent said there is not much change in America’s safety after al-Baghdadi’s death. Another 26 percent said American is safer as a result of the raid, while 16 percent said the country is more at risk.

The operation also does not appear to have altered Trump’s ratings as a leader. Forty-four percent of Americans said he’s a strong leader, while 54 percent said he’s not — a marginal drop from the same poll in January. Twenty-eight percent also said Trump’s policies have made America more respected on the world stage, compared with 54 percent who said America is now less respected. 

The raid to kill al-Baghdadi came after Trump announced that the U.S. would withdraw troops from northeastern Syria, a move critics say greenlighted a Turkish offensive against U.S.-allied Kurdish groups.

Forty-four percent of Americans in the poll released Thursday said the withdrawal would “weaken” efforts against ISIS, while 12 percent said it would strengthen U.S. operations against the group and 37 percent said it would make no difference. 

The Washington Post–ABC News poll surveyed 1,003 Americans from Oct. 27 to 30 and has a margin of error of 3.5 percentage points.