They are the segment of the public that is informed about and influential upon the way the United States conducts its affairs. Data revealed that the leaders' views consistently differ from those of the general public. The chapter examines data on the content of opinions about several international issues. The opinion leaders consistently favored internationalism almost unanimously, while among the general public, approximately half were in favor of internationalism. The general public was significantly in favor of tariffs, contrasting with opinion leaders.
Leaders are twice as likely as the general public to support foreign economic aid.
Opinion leaders and the general public agreed in their opposition to military aid abroad. However, opinion leaders are consistently more willing to use American troops in various hypothetical situation involving enemy invasion of American friends or allies. There is one exception, however, the general public would be more than twice as likely to be in favor of sending troops to Cuba to overthrow the Castro dictatorship. The analysis then turns to the structure of foreign policy beliefs, presenting evidence about appraisal of the international system, future threat to U.S. national security, the Persian Gulf War, and the sources of change in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. The chapter concludes with an examination of the relationships between domestic and foreign policy beliefs among opinion leaders and finds some ideological coherence.