Faith of Canadians in Biden, U.S. slipped in the spring, Pew survey suggests

Canadians still have a more positive view of the United States and its current commander-in-chief than they did three years ago — but that faith is showing signs of slipping, a new survey suggests. 

A new Pew Research Center survey of 23 countries released Tuesday found 57 per cent of Canadian respondents said they had a favourable view of the U.S., down from 63 per cent in 2022. 

It's still a far cry from the Donald Trump-era low of 35 per cent in 2020, as well as the 20-year high of 72 per cent measured in 2002 in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks the previous year. 

But there are clear signs — both in Canada and around the world — that early into his third year as the 46th U.S. president, the global euphoria that greeted Joe Biden's election win in 2020 has drifted from optimism to apprehension. 

"This year, our research finds that international ratings of the U.S. are generally positive, but people in the 23 countries surveyed are critical of the U.S. on certain measures," said senior Pew researcher Janell Fetterolf.

"While many say American society is similar to other wealthy nations, notable shares say the U.S. is less tolerant and a more dangerous place to live."

The survey also found less Canadian confidence in Biden to do the right thing regarding world affairs: 58 per cent, down from 61 per cent in 2022 and 77 per cent in 2021. 

Of those, 14 per cent expressed "a lot of confidence" and 44 per cent "some confidence," down from 25 per cent and 52 per cent, respectively, in 2021. At the other end of the ledger, 26 per cent said they had "no confidence at all," compared with 11 per cent two years earlier.

At the same time, however, 37 per cent said the U.S. takes Canada's interests into account when making international policy decisions, up from 34 per cent in 2021. It's the highest percentage recorded in Canada since the survey began in 2002. 

Indeed, the median response from respondents around the world was almost evenly split 50-50 on that question, a marked shift in sentiment, the centre reported. 

"The share who say the U.S. considers their interests on policy decisions at least a fair amount has increased significantly in many countries since the question was last asked," the survey found. 

"The share saying this is larger now than at any point over the past two decades in 12 countries, including Poland, Germany and the U.K. — three key NATO allies of the U.S."

Those findings, among others, likely reflect the outsized influence of Biden and the U.S. in Ukraine's war with Russia, which began in February 2022. In Poland alone, those surveyed gave the U.S. an approval rating of 93 per cent. 

"Poland's views of the U.S. improved dramatically last year after the start of the war in Ukraine and remain high this year."

Six in 10 of those surveyed in Canada said the U.S. contributes to peace and stability around the world, compared with 39 per cent who felt the opposite. 

And when asked to identify the world's leading economic power, 44 per cent of Canadian respondents chose the U.S., compared with 40 per cent who said China — a reversal of 2020, when China won out, 47 to 36 per cent. 

The survey also asked respondents to rate the U.S. on a host of institutional measures, including technological achievements, entertainment, universities, the military and standard of living. 

Three out of four Canadians surveyed rated U.S. entertainment — movies, music and television — as the best of or better than that from other wealthy nations, while only 25 per cent felt that way about the standard of living south of the border.

The Canadian segment of the survey consulted 1,007 people via landline and cellphone between Feb. 21 and April 15, a period that straddled Biden's March 24 visit to Ottawa, his first as president. It carries a margin of error of plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.