About half (49%) of Republicans say there is a great deal of media bias, and this rises to 57% among conservative Republicans. By comparison, 32% of Democrats and 35% of independents see a great deal of bias in the news. This partisan gap is no wider than in the 2008 campaign, when 43% of Republicans, 25% of Democrats, and 30% of independents felt there was a great deal of bias.

Men (41%) are somewhat more likely than women (33%) to see bias in the news. Younger Americans under 50 (31%) are less likely than those 50 and older (44%) to see a great deal of bias in coverage. Differences also exist across socioeconomic lines with higher-earning and better-educated Americans more likely to say there is a great deal of political bias in the news.

As in the past, most Americans say they prefer to get political news from sources that have no particular political point of view than from sources that share their political view. About two-thirds (68%) say they prefer to get political news from sources that do not have a political point of view, compared with just 23% who prefer news from sources that share their point of view (23%). Roughly two-thirds of the public has expressed this preference since the question was first asked in 2004. There is no substantial partisan difference on this question.

News Sources and Political Knowledge

The general public’s knowledge about some of the fundamentals of the major candidates’ resumes, positions and the campaign process is rather limited. The survey, conducted Jan. 4-8 after the Iowa caucuses and before the New Hampshire primary, found 58% were able to identify Newt Gingrich as the candidate who had been speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Fewer than half (46%) knew that Mitt Romney was governor of Massachusetts, and just 37% could identify Ron Paul as the Republican candidate opposed to U.S. military involvement in Afghanistan. About as many (39%) knew that the next primary after New Hampshire would be held in South Carolina. (For more about voters’ knowledge about the candidates and campaign, see “Many Voters Unaware of Basic Facts about GOP Candidates.”)

About a third of the Americans (35%) answered three or four of the questions correctly. This is somewhat higher among those who cite MSNBC (49%) or the Fox News Channel (48%) as their main television source for campaign news, as well as among those who get most of their news on the radio (48%).

Overall, people who cite the internet as their main source of campaign news do slightly better than average in terms of campaign knowledge; 42% answered at least three questions correctly.  But there is a huge difference among internet users based on where they get campaign news.

Those who cite national newspapers as one of their online campaign news sources do well on the knowledge quiz: 73% answered at least three questions correctly. That compares with 50% of those who cite cable network websites. Just a third (33%) of those who get campaign news from Yahoo, Google, MSN or AOL answered at least three questions correctly.

Enjoying Political News

About a quarter of the public enjoys keeping up with news about campaigns and elections a lot, but that sentiment is less common among independents and young adults. About three-in-ten Republicans (30%) and Democrats (27%) say they enjoy it a lot, compared with 17% of independents. Indeed, independents are as likely to say they don’t enjoy keeping up with politics at all (21%).

Among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents, those who agree with the Tea Party are much more likely than those who do not to say they enjoy political news a lot (41% vs. 16%).

About a third of people age 50 and older (32%) say they enjoy keeping up with political news a lot, but fewer 30-to-49-year-olds agree (18%) and just 13% of those younger than 30 say they enjoy political news a lot. Almost a quarter of those younger than 30 (24%) say they do not enjoy it at all.

With a contested primary in only one party this year, fewer Americans are closely following news about the presidential campaign than four years ago. As a consequence, long-term declines in the number of people getting campaign news from such sources as local TV and network news have steepened, and even the number gathering campaign news online, which had nearly tripled between 2000 and 2008, has leveled off in 2012.

The one constant over the course of the past four elections is the reach of cable news. Currently, 36% of Americans say they are regularly learning about the candidates or campaign on cable news networks. That is virtually unchanged from previous campaigns, yet cable news is now the top regular source for campaign news.

The cable networks also hosted most of the candidate debates, which stand out as a particularly interesting aspect of the campaign. Nearly half of Republicans (47%) have watched a GOP debate during this campaign, up from 32% at a comparable point four years ago.

In contrast to cable, the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press’ 2012 campaign news survey, conducted Jan. 4-8 among 1,507 adults nationwide, finds broad declines in the numbers getting campaign news from newspapers, and local and network TV news. Just 20% say they regularly learn something about the presidential campaign or candidates from their local daily newspapers. In 2008, 31% said they got campaign news from their daily newspaper and 40% did so in the 2000 election cycle. There are comparable declines in the share regularly getting campaign information from network evening news programs and local TV news. For all three of these sources, the rate of decline slowed during the dramatic 2008 election cycle, but has again continued on a downward track.

In previous campaigns, declining figures for traditional sources were at least partly offset by increasing numbers turning to the internet. But that is not the case in 2012, as the number regularly getting campaign news online has leveled off. This is largely due to a lack of interest in the early 2012 campaign among younger Americans, who have traditionally been the broadest internet news consumers, and who also are less apt to be Republicans.

Over the month of January, only 20% of those younger than 30 said they were following news about the campaign very closely, down from 31% in January 2008. In fact, on the weekend Newt Gingrich won a dramatic victory in the South Carolina primary, young people expressed as much interest in a battle over online piracy legislation as they did in the campaign. (See “Cruise Ship Accident, Election Top Public’s Interests,” Jan. 24, 2012).

As campaign interest among young people has declined, fewer say they are going online for campaign news. Just 29% of those younger than 30 regularly learn something about the campaign online, down from 42% four years ago. Early in the 2008 campaign, people under age 30 were twice as likely as people 30 and older to get campaign information online. There is far less of an age gap today.

While other sources have advanced and receded, cable news networks have held their own over the past four election cycles. Moreover, cable news reaches a substantial number across age and partisan lines. To be sure, Republicans and Democrats are increasingly turning to different cable networks for their campaign news. When asked where they get most of their campaign news, far more Republicans than Democrats cite Fox News, while Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to cite CNN and MSNBC.

Few Learning from Social Networks

Many of the newest internet tools for getting campaign information, including social networking, are being used by a relatively limited audience. One-in-five Americans (20%) say they regularly or sometimes get campaign information from Facebook and just one-in-twenty (5%) say the same about Twitter. Even among Facebook and Twitter users, most say they hardly ever or never learn about the campaign or candidates through those sources.

About half (52%) of Americans say they at least sometimes learn about the campaign from websites or apps of TV, newspaper, magazine or radio news organizations. Slightly more than a third (36%) regularly or sometimes learn from websites or apps of news sources that are only available online.

When respondents are asked to name the specific internet sources they turn to for campaign news and information, the most frequently cited are CNN (by 24% of those who get campaign news online), Yahoo (22%), Google (13%), Fox News (10%), MSN (9%) and MSNBC (8%). Politically-oriented sites like Huffington Post and the Drudge Report are each mentioned by only 2% of those who get campaign news online.

More See Biased Coverage

The survey finds that the number saying there is a great deal of political bias in the news has risen to a new high, with the most intense criticism coming from Tea Party Republicans. Currently, 37% of Americans say there is a great deal of bias in news coverage and 30% say there is a fair amount of bias. Far fewer see not too much bias (21%) or none at all (10%). The percentage saying there is a great deal of bias has increased six points, from 31% to 37%, since 2008.

About three-quarters (74%) of Republicans who agree with the Tea Party movement say there is a great deal of bias – at least twice the percentage as in any other political group, including non-Tea Party Republicans (33%) and liberal Democrats (36%). Among news audiences, those who cite the Fox News Channel or the radio as their main source of campaign news are the most likely to say there is a great deal of bias in news coverage.

Campaign Outreach

While new technology allows campaigns and groups multiple ways to reach out to voters, campaign commercials have by far the widest reach. Fully 72% of registered voters nationwide report having seen or heard campaign commercials related to the 2012 presidential campaign. That is far more than the percentages saying they have received  email from a campaign or political group (16%), visited a candidate’s website (15%) or followed a candidate’s updates on Twitter or Facebook (6%).

While small, the number of people who track candidates on social networking has grown. At this point in the 2008 campaign, just 3% said they had signed up as a “friend” of a candidate on a social networking site.

One-in-four (25%) say they have already received pre-recorded telephone calls about the campaign, often referred to as “robocalls.” That is comparable to the level early in the 2008 presidential campaign. Only about a third as many (8%) have gotten phone calls from a live person. Telephone outreach has not been limited to Republicans. Democrats and Democratic-leaning voters are just as likely as Republicans and Republican leaners to have received live phone calls (8% each), and only slightly less likely to have received campaign robocalls (23% vs. 28% of Republicans).

Overall, 7% of registered voters say they have contributed money to a campaign, about the level measured early in the 2008 campaign (8% in Nov. 2007). But unlike four years ago, Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters are more likely than Republicans and Republican leaners to say they have contributed to a candidate – presumably Obama – in the 2012 campaign.

The 2012 campaign also is attracting less interest from young people. So far this year, only 20% of people under age 30 have been following news about the campaign very closely. That compares with 31% four years ago. Interest is down slightly among those ages 30 to 64, and has held steady among older Americans. This year, people age 65 and older are twice as likely as those under 30 to be closely following the election (40% vs. 20%). Four years ago, there was only a small gap between the interest of younger and older Americans.

Campaign News Sources

The audiences for several traditional campaign news sources – including local television news, nightly network news and daily newspapers – fell between 2000 and 2004 but stabilized during the 2008 campaign, which attracted considerable public interest. The new survey finds further declines in the numbers saying they regularly get campaign news from these traditional sources.

Roughly a third (32%) say they regularly get campaign news from local television news, down from 40% four years ago. About a quarter (26%) say they regularly learn about the campaign from nightly network news, down six points since December 2007. And just 20% regularly get campaign news from local newspapers, compared with 31% who regularly learned something from their daily newspaper four years ago.

During the 2000 campaign, local television (48%), nightly network news (45%) and daily newspapers (40%) were the public’s leading regular sources for campaign news. At that time, the audiences for all three surpassed the number who regularly said they got campaign news from cable news networks.

Yet cable news has maintained its campaign news audience over the last dozen years and now ranks as the top regular source for campaign news and information. Currently, 36% say they regularly learn about the campaign from cable news networks, which is little changed from the three previous presidential campaigns.

A quarter of Americans (25%) say they regularly learn something about the campaign from the internet, which is virtually unchanged from 2008 (24%). Between 2000 and 2008, the number relying on the internet for campaign news increased from 9% to 24%.

When it comes to specific internet sources, relatively few say they are regularly learning about the campaign from Facebook (6%), YouTube videos (3%) or Twitter (2%). Instead, the more common sources of campaign news online are the websites or apps of television, radio, newspaper or magazine news organizations (20%) and online-only sites and apps (12%).

Young People Less Engaged

Reflecting their lack of interest in the 2012 campaign generally, young people are significantly less likely to say they are learning about the campaign from the internet than four years ago. Just 29% of those younger than 30 say they regularly learn about the candidates and campaigns online, compared with 42% early in the 2008 campaign. The web has grown as a source for those in older age groups, though not those ages 50 to 64.

The internet is not the only campaign news source that young people are using less. Compared with four years ago, half as many 18-to-29-year-olds regularly learn about the campaign from daily newspapers (11% down from 25%) and network evening news (12% down from 24%). Fewer young people also are getting campaign news from local television news.

Meanwhile, cable news has grown to be the top source partly by expanding its reach among older Americans. In 2000, barely a third (34%) of people age 65 and older said they regularly got campaign information from cable networks. That put cable far behind local television news (59%), daily newspapers (58%) and nightly network news (56%) among those in this age group.

Today, the share of Americans 65 and older who regularly get campaign information from cable networks has risen to 47%, which is on par with local television news (45%). Among those in this age group, 36% regularly get campaign news from nightly network news and 31% regularly learn about the campaign from daily newspapers (31%).

Age and News Sources

The top campaign news sources for those younger than 30 continue to be the internet and cable news networks. Still, only about three-in-ten regularly learn something about the campaign from these sources (29% internet, 28% cable).

The next most common sources for younger Americans are local television news and late night comedy shows, cited as regular sources of campaign information by 15% each. In fact, aside from the internet and other online sources, late night comedy shows are the only campaign news source tested that young people turn to more than older people.

People age 65 and older are three times as likely as those younger than 30 to regularly learn about the election from local television news (45% versus 15%) and nightly network news (36% versus 12%), and the gap is almost as large for local daily newspapers (31% versus 11%).

Social Networks and Campaign News

Very few Americans regularly learn about the campaign from Facebook (6%) or Twitter (2%). This partly reflects the fact that these social networks are not used at all by large numbers of Americans. But even among Twitter users, just 17% say they regularly learn about the presidential election from Twitter; another 24% say they sometimes learn about the campaign this way. Most Twitter users say they hardly ever (19%) or never (40%) learn about the election from Twitter.

Similarly, only about one-in-ten (11%) people who use social networking sites, such as Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn, say they regularly learn about the campaign from Facebook and another quarter say they sometimes do. Almost half of social networkers (46%) say they never learn about the election there. Another 17% say they hardly ever learn about the campaign from Facebook.

Social networking plays a larger role for younger Americans. Among social network users under age 50, about 40% say they regularly or sometimes learn about the campaign from Facebook. Among social network users who are 50 and older, just 24% say the same.

Main Sources of Campaign News

The survey includes a measure of where people get most of their news about the presidential election campaign, as well as asking about the news sources they regularly use.

As in past campaigns, a large majority (69%) cites television as a main source of campaign news. About a third (34%) cites the internet as a top campaign news source. For the first time, more Americans mention the internet than newspapers as a main campaign news source (34% vs. 22%). At about the same point four years ago, roughly equal numbers listed the internet (26%) and newspapers (30%) as their main campaign news source.

Nearly two-thirds (64%) of those younger than 30 say television is a top news source, and 54% say the same about the internet. The internet is the second most frequently named source for those 30 to 49. Among those 50 to 64, about as many say they get most of their campaign news from the internet (28%) as from newspapers (27%). Television is, far and away, the top source for those 65 and older (86%), followed by newspapers (41%). Far fewer (14%) say the internet is a top source, with about as many as citing radio (12%).

Partisan Cable Landscape

Cable television news is a main campaign news source for 45% of Republicans, 41% of Democrats and 37% of independents. But they turn to different cable networks. Republicans are far more likely to count on Fox News (36%) for campaign information than are Democrats (11%). Democrats are much more likely than Republicans to rely on CNN (26% vs. 12%) and MSNBC (17% vs. 5%).

Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who agree with the Tea Party are especially likely to rely on Fox News as a main television source of campaign news: 53% say they get most of their news about the election from Fox News, compared with just 26% of other Republicans and Republican leaners.

Top Online Sources for Campaign News

Those who get news online tend to rely on the websites or apps of news organizations and search engines or aggregators. Almost a quarter cite CNN (24%) and nearly as many (22%) point to Yahoo. Google (13%) and Fox also are popular (10%). Facebook was mentioned by 5% of internet news users, as many as cited the New York Times. Twitter was named by 2% of internet news users.

Young adults list many of the same sites as those who are older: Among those younger than 30 who use the internet to get news, CNN, Yahoo and Google are among their top online sources of campaign information. Facebook is offered by 8% of young people and Twitter by 4%.

Far more Republican internet news users (22%) than independents (7%) or Democrats (4%) say they turn to Fox News online for campaign news. Partisan differences in the numbers going to CNN and MSNBC are less dramatic. Three-in-ten (30%) Democratic internet news users cite CNN as a main source for campaign news, as do 22% of independents and 20% of Republicans. About one-in-ten Democrats (11%) and Republicans (9%) cite MSBNC, along with 5% of independents.

By the end of 2007, Republican candidates had held a comparable number of debates, but only 33% of the public had watched. The Democratic debates drew more interest that year, with 40% saying they had watched any of those debates.

Nearly half (47%) of Republicans have seen a debate during the current campaign, up from 32% at the same point in the 2008 campaign. Among Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who agree with the Tea Party, fully 66% have seen a GOP debate.

Democrats also are more interested in the Republican debates than they were four years ago; 44% have seen a GOP debate, up from 34% in late 2007. Democrats are about as likely to have seen one or more GOP debates during this campaign as to have watched a Democratic debate four years ago (46%).

Independents are less likely than either Republicans or Democrats to have seen a GOP debate this cycle. Roughly a third of independents (35%) have watched a Republican debate, which is largely unchanged from four years ago (34%). Among Republican-leaning independents, however, 47% have watched a GOP debate during this campaign – the same percentage as among Republicans.

Among Americans who have watched the debates, 38% say they have learned a lot about the candidates from them, including 44% of Republicans and 35% of both Democrats and independents.

Campaign Outreach

While the internet gives campaigns new tools for reaching out to potential voters, the campaign tactics that have the broadest reach are some of the most traditional in nature. About seven-in-ten voters (72%) say they have seen or heard campaign commercials, and 21% have received mail about the candidates or campaigns. Roughly a quarter (26%) have received phone calls about the candidates or campaigns, with pre-recorded calls outpacing calls from staffers or supporters by three-to-one (25% have received robocalls, 8% live calls).

Fewer than one-in-five voters (16%) have received email about the candidates from the campaigns or political groups, and about the same number (15%) have visited campaign websites. And while all the major candidates have ways in which voters can follow or receive updates from candidates through Facebook or Twitter, only 6% of registered voters in the country have done so.

Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters (10%) are twice as likely as Republican and Republican-leaning voters (5%) to have made donations during this presidential campaign. This is largely unchanged for Democrats from four years ago, but self-reported donations by GOP voters have dropped from about this time four years ago (10% in November 2007).

The combined landline and cell phone sample are weighted using an iterative technique that matches gender, age, education, race, Hispanic origin and nativity and region to parameters from the March 2011 Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey and population density to parameters from the Decennial Census. The sample also is weighted to match current patterns of telephone status and relative usage of landline and cell phones (for those with both), based on extrapolations from the 2011 National Health Interview Survey. The weighting procedure also accounts for the fact that respondents with both landline and cell phones have a greater probability of being included in the combined sample and adjusts for household size within the landline sample. Sampling errors and statistical tests of significance take into account the effect of weighting. The following table shows the sample sizes and the error attributable to sampling that would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:

Sample sizes and sampling errors for other subgroups are available upon request.

In addition to sampling error, one should bear in mind that question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.

Some of the analysis in this report is based on telephone interviews conducted January 5-8, 2012 among a national sample of 1,000 adults 18 years of age or older living in the continental United States (600 respondents were interviewed on a landline telephone, and 400 were interviewed on a cell phone, including 184 who had no landline telephone). The survey was conducted by interviewers at Princeton Data Source under the direction of Princeton Survey Research Associates International. A combination of landline and cell phone random digit dial samples were used; both samples were provided by Survey Sampling International. Interviews were conducted in English. Respondents in the landline sample were selected by randomly asking for the youngest adult male or female who is now at home. Interviews in the cell sample were conducted with the person who answered the phone, if that person was an adult 18 years of age or older.

The combined landline and cell phone sample are weighted using an iterative technique that matches gender, age, education, race, Hispanic origin and region to parameters from the March 2011 Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey and population density to parameters from the Decennial Census. The sample also is weighted to match current patterns of telephone status, based on extrapolations from the 2011 National Health Interview Survey. The weighting procedure also accounts for the fact that respondents with both landline and cell phones have a greater probability of being included in the combined sample and adjusts for household size within the landline sample. Sampling errors and statistical tests of significance take into account the effect of weighting. The following table shows the sample sizes and the error attributable to sampling that would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:

Sample sizes and sampling errors for other subgroups are available upon request.

In addition to sampling error, one should bear in mind that question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.

By comparison, just 46% of Republican voters have positive opinions of the GOP field, according to the latest survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, conducted Jan. 26-29 among 1,006 adults, including 341 Republican and Republican-leaning registered voters. In early January, shortly before the New Hampshire primary, 51% gave the field excellent or good ratings while 44% rated the candidates collectively as only fair or poor.

That survey showed that GOP voters’ ratings of the field are far less positive than were opinions of the Republican field in 2008. At about this point four years ago, 68% of Republican and GOP-leaning voters rated the field as excellent or good. (See “GOP Voters Still Unenthused about Presidential Field,” Jan. 9, 2012.)

Who Understands Problems of Average Americans?

Separately, the survey, in partnership with The Washington Post, finds that far more voters say Barack Obama understand the problems of average Americans than say that about either Mitt Romney or Newt Gingrich. More than half of all registered voters (55%) say Obama understands the problems of average Americans very or fairly well. About four-in-ten (41%) say he understands people’s problems not too well or not at all well.

Only about four-in-ten voters (39%) give Romney high marks for understanding the problems of average Americans; about the same percentage (36%) says Gingrich does very or fairly well in understanding people’s problems.

About half of independent voters (53%) rate Obama positively in understanding the problems of average Americans; only 38% and 37% of independents, respectively, give Romney and Gingrich positive ratings. Democratic voters overwhelmingly say that Obama understands the problems of average people (84%). Smaller majorities of GOP voters give Romney (61%) and Gingrich (60%) positive ratings.

As the 2012 State of the Union approaches, the public continues to give the highest priority to economic issues. Fully 86% say that strengthening the economy should be a top priority for the president and Congress this year, and 82% rate improving the job situation as a top priority. None of the other 20 issues tested in this annual survey rate as a top priority for more than 70% of Americans.

More generally, the public’s concerns rest more with domestic policy than at any point in the past 15 years; 81% say Obama should be focused on domestic policy, just 9% say foreign policy. In keeping with this, defending against terrorism and strengthening the military are given less priority today than over the course of the past decade.

Nonetheless, the public is keeping a wary eye on Iran. It is now seen as the country that represents the greatest danger to the U.S., and more Americans prioritize taking a firm stand against Iran over avoiding military conflict. And with respect to restructuring America’s national security policy, the public is evenly divided as to whether a smaller military can be just as effective as a larger one in facing future security challenges.

Shifting GOP Priorities

The new poll finds that the federal budget deficit stands out as the fastest growing policy priority for Americans, largely because of growing Republican concerns about the issue. In the national survey, conducted Jan. 11-16 among 1,502 adults, 69% rate reducing the budget deficit as a top priority – the most in any of the Pew Research Center’s annual policy priority updates going back to 1994.

The number of Republicans rating the budget deficit as a top priority has spiked to 84% from 68% a year ago and just 42% five years ago. Meanwhile Republicans are placing far less emphasis on terrorism, which was their top priority in every year between 2002 and 2008. Today 72% rate it as a top priority, down from 83% a year ago and 93% five years ago. By contrast, the emphasis Democrats and independents give to terrorism and the budget deficit has changed far less.

Parties Divide on Medicare, Health Care

Making the Social Security and Medicare systems financially sound continue to be top-tier issues for Americans, with 68% and 61% rating them as top priorities, respectively. There is a substantially larger partisan divide over Medicare, which Democrats view as higher priority than do Republicans, than over Social Security. Reducing health care costs remains one of the more divisive issues politically, as it was even before the recent battle over health care reform. Currently, 71% of Democrats rate it as a top priority, compared with just 49% of Republicans.

Energy and Environment

No issue divides partisans more than the importance of environmental protection – 58% of Democrats say it is a top priority, compared with just 27% of Republicans. Of the 22 items tested, environmental protection is one of the lowest GOP priorities, along with such issues as improving transportation infrastructure and campaign finance reform. Dealing with the nation’s energy problems, by contrast, is of equal importance to both Republicans (55% top priority) and Democrats (57%), though other recent surveys suggest that partisans have very different solutions in mind.

Since it was first tested on the annual policy priorities list in 2007, the share of Americans who view dealing with global warming as a top priority has slipped from 38% to 25%. Democrats (38%) are far more likely than Republicans (11%) to rate this as a top priority. But the decline has occurred across party lines: In 2007, 48% of Democrats rated dealing with global warming as a top priority, as did 23% of Republicans.

Money and Politics

Despite a recent focus on the issue of money in politics, including the role of Super PACs in the 2012 Republican primaries, the issue remains on the back burner for most Americans. Just 28% say reforming the campaign finance system is a top priority for the president and Congress in 2012, and it is one of the lowest ranked issues across party lines. Somewhat more (40%) say reducing the influence of lobbyists and special interest groups in Washington is a top priority. There has been little change in the public’s focus on either issue compared with previous years.

Declining Focus on Immigration

The share of Americans ranking illegal immigration as a top priority has fallen to 39% from 46% a year ago and 55% in 2007. This decline has occurred across party lines, with a notable drop among Republicans. In 2007, illegal immigration was the second-highest priority after terrorism for Republicans, with 69% rating it as a top priority. Today, 48% of Republicans rate it as a top priority, placing it behind 11 other priorities.

Tax Fairness a Low GOP Priority

About six-in-ten Americans (61%) say that making the tax system more fair should be a top priority for the president and Congress this year. It ranks among the top 10 issue priorities, well above items like immigration or the environment, and nearly on par with perennially top-tier issues like education (65% top priority). Democrats and independents rate this as a more critical issue than do Republicans, but half of Republicans say this should be a top priority in 2012. About two-thirds of Americans with household incomes under $75,000 rate this as a top priority, compared with about half of those earning $75,000 or more.

Iran a Top Concern

The recent tensions over Iran’s nuclear program and disputes between the U.S. and Iran in the Persian Gulf have garnered a good deal of public attention. Roughly four-in-ten (42%) say they have heard a lot about this, and 41% have heard a little. The percentage naming Iran as the country posing the greatest danger to the U.S. has more than doubled to 28% from 12% a year ago, and it now ranks slightly higher than China. Of those following the Iran situation, 54% say the U.S. should take a firm stand against Iran’s actions, while 39% say it is more important to avoid a military conflict with Iran.

On Afghanistan, the public favors removing U.S. troops as soon as possible by a wide 56% to 38% margin. Obama continues to receive highly favorable marks for his handling of Afghanistan, and more approve than disapprove of his handling of Iran as well. (For more, see “Obama: Weak Job Ratings, But Positive Personal Image” Jan. 19, 2012).

The State of the Union

As President Obama prepares for his third State of the Union speech Tuesday evening, 36% say this address will be more important than previous years’ speeches; 14% say it will be less important and 46% say it will be about as important as past State of the Union addresses. This is about the same balance of opinion offered before each of Obama’s previous two addresses.

Not surprisingly, far more Democrats (53%) than independents (29%) or Republicans (27%) view Obama’s speech as more important than usual. However, there is considerably more agreement that Obama should focus his energies on domestic issues, rather than foreign policy: Currently, 81% want the president to focus domestically, much more than said this prior to George W. Bush’s last two State of the Unions, in 2007 and 2008.

The combined landline and cell phone sample are weighted using an iterative technique that matches gender, age, education, race, Hispanic origin and nativity and region to parameters from the March 2011 Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey and population density to parameters from the Decennial Census. The sample also is weighted to match current patterns of telephone status and relative usage of landline and cell phones (for those with both), based on extrapolations from the 2011 National Health Interview Survey. The weighting procedure also accounts for the fact that respondents with both landline and cell phones have a greater probability of being included in the combined sample and adjusts for household size within the landline sample. Sampling errors and statistical tests of significance take into account the effect of weighting. The following table shows the sample sizes and the error attributable to sampling that would be expected at the 95% level of confidence for different groups in the survey:

Sample sizes and sampling errors for other subgroups are available upon request.

In addition to sampling error, one should bear in mind that question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of opinion polls.

Among those who are aware of the recent tensions between the U.S. and Iran over Iran’s nuclear program and disputes in the Persian Gulf, a majority say that it is more important to take a firm stand against Iranian actions (54%) than to avoid a military conflict with Iran (39%). More than seven-in-ten Republicans (72%) say taking a firm stand is more important, as do a smaller majority (52%) of independents.

Democrats are more evenly split: 45% say taking a firm stand, 47% say avoiding a military conflict. This reflects a division of opinion within Democrats; while 52% of conservative and moderate Democrats say taking a firm stand is more important, that falls to 36% among liberal Democrats.

There also is a sizable age gap in opinions about how to deal with Iran. Among those under 30 who have heard about recent U.S.-Iran tensions, 56% say it is more important to avoid a military conflict with Iran. Majorities in older age groups – including 61% of those 65 and older –say it is more important to take a firm stand against Iranian actions.

More Perceive Iran as Greatest Danger

When asked which country represents the greatest danger to the U.S., more Americans volunteer Iran (28%) than name any other country, though nearly as many (22%) name China. North Korea (8%), Iraq (7%) and Afghanistan (5%) are mentioned by smaller proportions of the public.

The percentage naming Iran has more than doubled since last January (from 12% then to 28% today); opinions today are on par with those in 2006 and 2007. Compared with last year, fewer now cite North Korea as the most dangerous nation (8% today, 18% then), while about as many say China as did so last January (22% today, 20% last year).

Republicans view Iran as the country that poses the greatest danger to the United States: 42% name Iran, compared with 23% who name China and 9% who say North Korea
By contrast, Iran and China are cited about equally by Democrats (24% and 20%, respectively) and independents (25% each).

Little Change in Views of Afghanistan

A majority (56%) says U.S. troops should be brought home from Afghanistan as soon as possible; 38% say troops should remain there until the situation has stabilized. Public views about the draw-down of U.S. forces are nearly identical to June, although this represented a stark shift from past years.

The public also continues to say the effort in Afghanistan is going at least fairly well (55%), with Republicans (62%) and Democrats (55%) about equally likely to say it is going well. Independents offer less positive assessments (51% very or fairly well, 42% less well).

There continue to be wide partisan differences over whether to keep U.S. troops in Afghanistan until the situation has stabilized or bring them home as soon as possible. A majority of Republicans (57%) say troops should remain in the country until the situation has stabilized. Two-thirds of Democrats (66%) and 56% of independents say troops should be removed as soon as possible. These patterns are little changed from June.

Can a Smaller Military Do The Job?

Following the Defense Department’s recent response to cuts to its budget, including plans to scale down the size of the armed forces, Americans are divided in their views about the effectiveness of a smaller military: 44% say a smaller military will reduce effectiveness, while 45% say a smaller military can be just as effective in facing future challenges.

Roughly two-thirds of Republicans (65%) say troop cuts will reduce effectiveness, compared with 46% of independents and just 31% of Democrats. There are substantial differences within partisan groups: While nearly three-quarters of liberal Democrats (73%) say a smaller military would be just as capable, conservative and moderate Democrats are more evenly split (39% less effective, 49% as effective).

Conversely, while moderate and liberal Republicans are split on the question, seven-in-ten conservative Republicans (70%) say downsizing military will diminish its effectiveness.

America’s Image Abroad

A 56% majority of Americans say the U.S. is less respected now than it was in the past. This is unchanged from November of 2009, and remains a more positive assessment of foreign impressions than throughout the later years of George W. Bush’s administration. At the same time, the percentage saying the U.S. is more respected than in the past has declined over the last two years (from 21% to 13%), with a comparable rise in the proportion saying the country is as respected as it had been (from 20% to 27%).

As was the case in 2009, Republicans are more likely than Democrats to say the U.S. is now less respected abroad (66% vs. 50%). But these evaluations shift with administrations; while George W. Bush was president, Democrats were far more likely to say the U.S. had lost respect. Today, 56% of independents say the U.S. is less respected than in the past, similar to the proportion who said this in 2009; fewer now say this than did so from 2004 to 2008.

Nearly seven-in-ten (69%) say protecting the nation from terrorism should be a top priority, not much different from one year ago (73%) but down from 80% at the start of 2010. Still, terrorism has been at or near the top of the annual priorities list since it was first included in 2002, shortly after the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Concern about the nation’s budget deficit, on the other hand, has been increasing in recent years. Currently, 69% say reducing the deficit is a top priority. In January 2009, only about half (53%) rated this as a top priority.  The proportion citing the deficit as a top priority is now on par with the number that said this in December 1994 (65%), during Bill Clinton’s second year in office.

Reducing the deficit or paying off the national debt became less of a priority in the late 1990s as the nation – and the federal government – benefited from a strong economy. Concern was also modest in the early years of the Bush administration, especially in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. But concern about deficits has increased steadily since 2009.

Still, strengthening entitlement programs continues to be important for most Americans: 68% say securing Social Security is a top priority, while 61% say this about the Medicare system. In both cases, those numbers are little changed in recent years. In addition, nearly two-thirds (65%) cite improving education as a top priority, again little changed in recent years. About six-in-ten cite making the tax system more fair (61%) or reducing health care costs (60%) as top priorities.

Dealing with illegal immigration remains a lower priority and concerns have fluctuated in recent years. Currently, 39% say dealing with illegal immigration should be a top priority, down from 46% in 2011; it stood at 40% in 2010. In 2007, a majority (55%) said dealing with illegal immigration should be a top priority.

A Spike in GOP Deficit Concerns

More than eight-in-ten Republicans (84%) say reducing the federal budget deficit is a top priority, up 16 points since last January and the highest percentage in a Pew Research Center survey.

During the Bush administration, at most only about half of Republicans viewed reducing the budget deficit as a top policy priority. In January 2009, shortly before George W. Bush left office, 51% of Republicans rated reducing the deficit as a top priority. That percentage jumped 17 points (to 68%) by January 2011 and has increased by about the same amount (16 points) in the last year alone.

Democrats’ concerns over the deficit also have risen in recent years, though less sharply than Republicans’. Currently, 66% of Democrats say reducing the budget deficit should be a top priority for the president and Congress, up from 52% in January 2009.

Nonetheless, Republicans are far more likely than Democrats to rate the deficit as a top priority. It is often the case that members of the party out of power express greater concern over the deficit than do members of the party in control of the White House. Throughout most of the Bush administration, more Democrats than Republicans rated reducing the budget deficit (or paying off the national debt) as a top priority. In 1997 and 1998, during Bill Clinton’s second term, more Republicans than Democrats viewed these issues as top priorities.

Familiar Partisan Divides

There continue to be substantial partisan differences over other policy goals as well. Nearly six-in-ten Democrats (58%) say protecting the environment should be a top priority for the president and the Congress, compared with just 27% of Republicans and 40% of independents.

Democrats also are far more likely than Republicans to view improving the education system (28-point partisan gap), dealing with the problems of the poor and needy (27 points) and dealing with global warming (27 points) as top priorities. Nearly four-in-ten Democrats (38%) say dealing with global warming should be a top priority, compared with just 11% of Republicans and 21% of independents.

Republicans, on the other hand, are more likely than Democrats to say that reducing the budget deficit (18-point partisan gap) and dealing with moral breakdown in the country (11 points) are top priorities for the president and Congress.

Republicans are less likely to view illegal immigration as a top priority than did so last year and the gap with Democrats has narrowed. About half of Republicans (48%) view dealing with illegal immigration as a top policy priority, down from 61% in 2011. Among independents, the number saying this is a top priority also fell, from 47% to 37%. Democrats’ views are largely unchanged (36% today, 33% last year).

Nearly identical percentages of Republicans (72%) and Democrats (71%), along with 66% of independents, say that defending the country from future terrorist attacks should be a top priority for the president and Congress.

There was a wide partisan gap over the importance of this issue during much of the Bush administration. And as recently as last year, Republicans were more likely than Democrats to rate defending against future attacks as a top priority (83% vs. 72%).