A recent survey by New York Times/Ipsos has found that a majority of Americans believe the US government is spending too much on Ukraine aid. Fifty-one percent of respondents think the country is spending “too much” on Ukraine, while 28% believe the current amount is appropriate. Only 17% think the US should increase its spending on Ukraine.
Similarly, a majority of Americans, 53%, think the US aid to Israel is excessive, while 30% consider it appropriate. The survey, conducted from January 2 to 10, polled 2,128 people across the US.
The public opinion reflected in the survey suggests that most Americans want the US to focus on domestic issues rather than foreign aid. Sixty percent of respondents think the US should “pay less attention to foreign problems and focus on domestic issues” while only 38% believe the country should remain actively engaged in global affairs.
The survey also found that 60% of Americans think the US government is “almost always wasteful and inefficient” and 72% believe it only works for its own agenda and not for the people.
This comes after the recent decision to provide an additional $500 million in military aid to Ukraine, announced on January 8. Since the escalation of the conflict with Russia in February 2022, the US Congress has approved over $175 billion in support for Ukraine, including $65.9 billion in direct military aid, according to recent Pentagon data.