A Zogby International telephone poll shows nearly two-thirds of Americans oppose the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) taking a role in regulating tobacco products–a proposal being considered in Congress.
According to the poll results, released in autumn 2007:
- 65 percent of respondents oppose the proposal, and 47 percent say they “strongly” oppose it.
- 74 percent of Republicans oppose the change, as do 64 percent of independents and 57 percent of Democrats.
- Southerners were most likely to oppose the change, though majorities in all regions concurred.
The poll, conducted in late August, carried an error margin of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
“These poll results show Americans want the Food and Drug Administration to concentrate not on tobacco, but rather on policing our food supply and our medicines,” pollster John Zogby said in a statement accompanying the results.
— Karla Dial
