A new poll shows that most Americans believe Trump has “gone too far” in military operations abroad

WASHINGTON — More than half of American adults believe President Donald Trump has “gone too far” in using the U.S. military to intervene in other countries, according to a new AP-NORC poll.

The poll, conducted by The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, was conducted from Jan. 8 to 11, after the capture of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. The poll found that 56% of American adults believe that Trump has gone beyond military interventions abroad, while a majority disapproves of the way the Republican president is handling foreign policy in general and Venezuela in particular.

The findings stand in stark contrast to Trump’s aggressive foreign policy stance, which has recently included efforts to seize control of Venezuelan oil, calls for the United States to seize control of Greenland and warnings that the United States would provide aid to people protesting in Iran. Many have viewed the Trump administration’s recent intervention in Venezuela as a “good thing” to stem the flow of illicit drugs into the United States and a benefit for the Venezuelan people, but few say it is positive for American national security or the American economy.

Republicans are mostly following Trump’s lead, despite the sharp contrast to the “America First” platform on which he ran. But few Republicans want Trump to go any further, highlighting the dangers of a continued outward focus.

Most Republicans say Trump’s actions were ‘right’

While the US has used its military might in Venezuela to arrest Maduro, Trump has also recently made comments about taking Greenland “the hard way” if Denmark’s leaders do not agree to a deal for the US to take it, and has also warned Iran that the US will come to the “rescue” of peaceful protesters.

He watches: How Denmark views Trump’s threats to seize Greenland

Democrats and independents lead the belief that Trump has gone too far. About 9 in 10 Democrats and about 6 in 10 independents say Trump has “gone too far” on military intervention, compared with about 2 in 10 Republicans.

An overwhelming majority of Republicans, 71%, say Trump’s actions were “right,” and only about 1 in 10 want to see him go further.

About 6 in 10 Americans, 57%, disapprove of the way Trump is handling the situation in Venezuela, slightly lower than the 61% who disapprove of his approach to foreign policy. Both actions are consistent with his general approval of his job, which has remained largely constant throughout his second term.

Many say US action in Venezuela would be good for stopping drug trafficking

Many Americans see some benefits from US intervention in Venezuela.

About half of Americans believe US intervention in Venezuela would be “mostly a good thing” to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the country. Nearly 4 in 10, or 44%, believe US measures will more benefit than harm the Venezuelan people, who have lived under Maduro’s dictatorship for more than a decade. But US adults are divided over whether intervention would be good or bad for US economic and national security interests, or whether it would simply have no effect.

Republicans are more likely than Democrats and independents to see the benefits of the US measure, especially its effects on drug trafficking. About 8 in 10 Republicans say US intervention would be “mostly a good thing” to stop the flow of illicit drugs into the country, but fewer Republicans, about 6 in 10, believe it would benefit the US economy.

Democrats and independents are motivated by the desire for the United States to play a “less active” role.

The poll found that most Americans do not want greater American involvement in world affairs. Nearly half of Americans want the United States to take a “less active” role, and about a third say its current role is “about right.”

Only about 2 in 10 American adults say they want the country to be more globally engaged, including about 1 in 10 Republicans.

At least half of Democrats and independents now want the United States to do less, a sharp shift from a few months ago.

At the same time, Republicans have become more likely to point out that Trump’s level of engagement is correct. About 6 in 10 Republicans, or 64%, say the country’s current role in world affairs is “about right,” up slightly from 55% in September. About a quarter of Republicans say the United States needs to take a “less active role” in solving problems around the world, down slightly from 34% a few months ago.

The AP-NORC poll of 1,203 adults was conducted Jan. 8-11 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.9 percentage points.