
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, June 29, 1993                   TAG: 9306290161
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-2   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: The New York Times
DATELINE: NEW YORK                                LENGTH: Short

CLINTON'S POPULARITY SHOOTS UP AFTER IRAQ ATTACK, POLL SAYS

President Clinton's decision to attack Iraq has brought him a substantial boost in approval ratings for handling both foreign policy and his overall job as president and has diminished uncertainty over his leadership on the world stage, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll.

The poll found that two-thirds of Americans surveyed supported the weekend air strike on the Iraqi intelligence headquarters in Baghdad, and six out of 10 approved of Clinton's general dealings with Iraq, more than approved of Clinton's handling of the crises in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Somalia.

As Clinton prepares to travel to Tokyo next week for a meeting of the Group of Seven industrial democracies, White House officials seized on the air strike as evidence that the president is sure-footed in international affairs.

The incident appeared to be the latest in a line of what scholars call "rally events," when uses of force abroad or diplomatic breakthroughs cause Americans to rally around their flag, their troops and their commander in chief. Past "rally events" have produced, on average, 8-percentage-point increases in a president's approval rating, and they have lasted an average of about 10 weeks, according to an analysis of the last 10 presidencies by the Gallup Organization.

Clinton's gain since Saturday appears to fit the pattern. The Times/CBS News poll found that after the air strike, 50 percent of Americans surveyed approved of the way Clinton was handling his overall job as president; last week, 39 percent approved.

by CNB