The Gallup Poll says Americans have changed their view since 2001 about which country poses the greatest threat—Iran has supplanted Iraq. When questioned in early February, 31 percent of Americans named Iran as the nation’s largest threat, while 22 percent said Iraq and 15 percent said North Korea. In 2001, 38 percent of Americans believed Iraq was our greatest threat with China coming in at No. 2 with a mere 14 percent. Iraq and North Korea were neck and neck last year, but Iran now leads the pack.
The Pentagon is significantly bolstering airpower near Venezuela, dispatching the USS Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group to Latin America, it said in an Oct. 24 statement. The announcement came just hours after U.S. Air Force B-1 bombers and other U.S. assets flew near the Venezuelan coast on Oct. 23.
