Poll: Most Arent Worried About Terrorist Threat

Analysis By Gary Langer, ABCNEWS.com

Dec. 20 Most Americans are relatively unworried about the threat of a terrorist attack this New Years Eve, apparently confident in the governments ability to deter mayhem on that particular evening or in their own decision to celebrate at home.

A new ABCNEWS.com poll finds 26 percent of Americans are worried about a major terrorist incident in this country during the New Years Eve holiday, including just 8 percent who are worried "a great deal." But 73 percent arent much worried and most of them, "not at all."

Neither government warnings nor the arrest of an Algerian charged with bringing bomb-making materials into the United States seems to have influenced these views. Results from interviews Wednesday and Thursday, before the arrest of Ahmed Ressam, are no different from results Friday, Saturday and Sunday, after his arrest was reported and the Clinton administration warned of a "heightened risk" of terrorism.

Its an open question, of course, whether further disclosures on Ressam, additional warnings or other developments will shake the publics confidence. Worries about further terrorism in this country were much higher after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, and again two years later after Timothy McVeigh was sentenced to death for that attack.

This poll, however, asks about terrorism on one specific night, New Years Eve. And earlier polling by ABCNEWS has shown that three-quarters of Americans plan to spend the holiday in the comfort and presumably the safety of their home, or a friends.

Methodology

This ABCNEWS.com survey was conducted by telephone Dec. 15-19 among a random national sample of 1,010 adults. The results have a three-point error margin. Field work was done by ICR-International Communications Research of Media, Pa. 

Gary Langer is the head of ABCNEWS polling unit.