Poll: Partisan divide on taxes, spending

WASHINGTON, Nov. 21 (UPI) -- Americans are divided along partisan lines on whether to raise taxes for the wealthy or cut domestic spending to reduce the federal debt, a poll indicated.

A CNN/ORC International Poll released Monday suggests the partisan divide between Democrats and Republicans explains the inability of a 12-member congressional supercommittee to come to an agreement on a $1.2 trillion deficit reduction plan, CNN reported.

The poll found about two-thirds of Americans favor tax increases for those with higher incomes, while 32 percent oppose such tax increases. However, Republicans opposed tax increases by 59 percent to 39 percent, while Democrats were against spending cuts 57 percent to 42 percent.

The poll also recorded the leanings of crucial independent voters.

CNN Polling Director Keating Holland said almost seven in 10 independent voters "don't have a problem with raising taxes on the wealthy and corporations."

"But independents also back major domestic spending cuts, something that Republicans favor but Democrats oppose," he said.

The poll found Americans are overwhelmingly opposed to raising taxes on the middle class, which was never on the committee's agenda, six in 10 are against major cuts in military spending and 57 percent are opposed to major changes to such entitlement programs as Social Security and Medicare.

The poll takers said there was blame enough to go around for the committee's failure.

"Neither party comes out very popular, but the approval rating of the GOP leadership in Congress has fallen further, and harder, than the same measure for congressional Democrats," Holland said -- noting that approval of congressional Republicans is at 21 percent while Democrats have a 29 percent approval rating.

The poll, conducted by telephone Nov. 18-20 with 1,019 U.S. adults, has a sampling error of 3 percentage points.