CNN Host: International Poll Shows ‘How Low the United States Image Has Sunk’

During the Friday edition of "The Situation Room," CNN’s Jack Cafferty summarized an international poll that showed many Europeans think President Bush is a greater threat to world peace than North Korea. He solemnly intoned that the results show "just how low the United States image has sunk." After reading the survey, Cafferty asked his audience this question:

Jack Cafferty: "...What does it mean when our closest allies think that President Bush is a greater threat to world peace than either North Korea or Iran?"

"Situation Room" host Wolf Blitzer had an answer:

Blitzer: "It means we got a serious problem internationally."

Cafferty: "We really do."

Apparently one answer, that these countries are wrong, didn’t occur to either man.

A transcript of the segment follows:

11/3/06 4:12 p.m.

Jack Cafferty: "'Cafferty File' for this hour. This is a shocking story. Some of America's closest allies think that President Bush is a greater threat to world peace than Iran or North Korea. These are surveys that were done in Britain, Israel, Canada, and Mexico. And they show just how low the United States image has sunk. In Britain, Osama bin Laden is seen as the most dangerous leader. Who’s in second place? President George W. Bush, followed by North Korean leader Kim jong-Il and the leader of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, along with Iran’s Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. That’s quite a group. When asked if American policy has made the world a more dangerous place, 69 percent of the people in Britain said yes, as do 62 percent of Canadians and 57 percent of Mexicans. And what do they think about the U.S. war in Iraq? 89 percent of Mexicans say the invasion was unjustified, along with 73 percent of Canadians and 71 percent of Britons. Israel, the only country in this poll that supported President Bush's decision to invade Iraq. So here is the question, what does it mean when our closest allies think that President Bush is a greater threat to world peace than either North Korea or Iran? E-mail your thoughts to Caffertyfile@cnn.com or go to cnn.com/Caffertyfile."

Blitzer: "It means we got a serious problem internationally."

Cafferty: "We really do."

Blitzer: " That's what it means. Thanks, Jack, very much."