Sunday, February 14, 1999
Polls support acquittal
The Associated Press
WASHINGTON — Americans agree with senators who voted to acquit President Clinton of impeachment charges, but they give the Senate low marks for its handling of the trial, polls released Saturday indicate.
A CBS News poll conducted after the vote Friday indicated 64 percent of the public supported acquittal, while 34 percent thought Mr. Clinton should have been convicted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice.
An ABC News poll taken Friday showed 60 percent of the public supported the Senate verdict, while an NBC poll on Saturday found 56 percent supported the Senate vote.
Of those polled for ABC, 71 percent said the Senate vote was based on partisan politics. When asked the same question about the House vote to impeach in December, 61 percent said that vote was purely partisan.
In the CBS poll, 56 percent disapproved of the Senate's handling of the trial.
The NBC poll Saturday of 635 adults had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. The CBS poll Friday of 926 adults had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
The ABC poll Friday of 526 adults had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.
ENQUIRER EDITORIAL
Impeachment vote may follow DeWine
Bury hatchet? Perhaps, but in whose back?
Polls support acquittal
Pundits debate fallout
Clinton Under Fire page
