America is viewed negatively in the rest of the world and it has been getting worse over the last several years. This was a very interesting topic to research. The Pew Global Attitudes Project has been doing surveys for years to assess attitudes towards America. The opinion of America has declined in every nation over the last five to eight years.
The Pew Studies look at what is driving Anti-American attitudes. There are a number of factors driving anti-Americanism around the world. Among Muslims, first and foremost is thinking that American policy is too supportive of Israel at the expense of Palestine. Even in Kuwait - an Arab and Muslim country that is relatively pro-American - 77% in a May 2003 poll said the U.S. favors Israel too much.
They asked people who have an unfavorable view of the U.S. whether their option is based on the action or inaction of President Bush, in most countries they have tended to say YES, it is President Bush. But, this problem is bigger than the people’s attitudes about President Bush. Many of the people surveyed talked about a broad discomfort with unrivaled American power.
A recent survey found that, among Europeans, large majorities voiced confidence in Obama. Meanwhile, relatively few have a positive opinion of his Republican rival, John McCain. Also, of the 14 nations surveyed, most European countries believe that American foreign policy will change for the better when a new president takes office.
In the Middle East, America’s role in the world will pose a challenge to the next president, whether it is McCain or Obama. The Pew trust pointed out that Obama's trip to Jordan took him into unfriendly territory. When the Illinois senator landed in Jordan, he found a public that, like others in the region, held negative views about the United States and remained skeptical about the future of American foreign policy, regardless of who is elected in November.
Of course, how the new president deals with the issue of the...