A majority of Americans -- 56 percent -- say it's unacceptable for the National Security Agency to monitor the phones of U.S. allies -- while 36 percent say the practice is fine, according to a new national survey from the Pew Research Center.
The poll found "virtually no partisan differences" in the opinions. Roughly equal shares of partisans — 57 percent of Republicans, 53 percent of Democrats and 56 percent of independents — say that the practice is unacceptable.
The survey, conducted Oct. 31-Nov. 3 among 1,002 adults, finds that only 22 percent say they closely followed news reports about the U.S. government’s phone and internet surveillance programs -- a similar finding to the numbers that paid very close attention to previous stories about government surveillance.
The poll found the public less tuned in to the reports on the government’s surveillance programs than news about the new health insurance exchanges -- 32 percent -- and the U.S. economy -- 31 percent.