Poll: Plurality supports Iran agreement

A plurality of respondents support a new interim deal hashed out between the United States and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear program, according to a new poll. 

A Reuters-Ipsos poll released Tuesday night found 44 percent of respondents supports the deal while 22 percent opposes it, leaving a large swath of the public without an opinion about the agreement reached over the weekend. 

{mosads}President Obama has defined the six month deal as a first step. The United States has agreed to lift some sanctions in exchange for Iran temporarily freezing its nuclear program and submitting to inspections, among other concessions. 

A Washington Post poll conducted before the agreement was reached found that 64 percent supported the broad outline of the proposed plan while 30 percent opposed it. 

Members of Congress have remained wary about the agreement and have pushed for a new round of sanctions on Iran, even after the deal was brokered. A proposed plan by some Democrats would delay those sanctions for six months, past the initial timeframe of the deal.

A near majority, 49 percent, supports increased sanctions if the initial deal does not lead to a broader agreement, while 31 percent would support more diplomacy. Another 20 percent would support military force in that case. 

The clear majority, 63 percent, believes Iran’s nuclear program is designed to create a bomb rather than for peaceful purposes. 

A separate Reuters tracking poll found Obama’s approval rating at 38 percent, near an all-time low. Reuters noted that foreign policy rarely gives a boost to presidential approval — especially as the healthcare rollout has dominated the news.  

The online poll surveyed 591 people and has a “credibility interval” of 4.9 percent.