Voters strongly believe that a state should have the right to avoid federal programs it doesn’t like, but they draw the line at states seceding from the union.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 59% of likely voters say states should have the right to opt out of federal government programs they don’t agree with. Just 25% disagree, while another 15% are not sure.

When asked about a specific program in late December, however, only 47% said states should have the right to opt out of the national health care plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats if it is passed into law. Nearly as many (40%) disagreed and opposed an opt-out clause for individual states.

Sixty-three percent (63%) of voters also think states should have the right to opt out of federally mandated programs if the federal government doesn’t help pay for them. Seventeen percent (17%) say states should not have the right to opt out of federally mandated programs.

But despite the rise of so-called “Tea Party” anti-federal government sentiment around the country, there’s no second Civil War at hand. Only 14% of voters think individual states have the right to leave the United States and form an independent country. Seventy-two percent (72%) do not believe states have this right, and 13% more are undecided.

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Seventy-six percent (76%) of Republicans and 67% of voters not affiliated with either major party say states should have the right to opt out of federal programs with which they don’t agree. Just 37% of Democrats agree.

The findings are similar on the question of whether states should be able to opt out of federally mandated programs that don’t include sufficient federal funding. But a plurality (45%) of Democrats support opting-out, along with sizable majorities of GOP voters and unaffiliateds.

While 66% of Mainstream voters believe states should have the right to pass on federal programs they don’t like, 78% of the Political Class disagree.

Sixty-eight percent (68%) of Mainstream voters also think states should be able to opt out of mandated programs if the federal government doesn’t help pay for them. Those in the Political Class are much more narrowly divided on this question.

A frequent complaint of state government officials is that the federal government mandates expensive programs that the states must follow and then lets the financial burden fall on state taxpayers. Many states are now facing difficult budget crises and are looking for federal help. But 58% of Americans oppose giving bailout money to financially troubled states.

Seventy-five percent (75%) of voters say they are at least somewhat angry at the government’s current policies, up four points from late November and up nine points since September.

Last April, a comment by Texas Governor Rick Perry was widely interpreted as suggesting voters in that state might consider secession “if Washington continues to thumb their nose at the American people.” At that time, 31% of Texas voters said the state had a right to secede from the union and form an independent country. But if put to a vote, 75% preferred to remain in the United States.

Male voters favor much more strongly than female voters opting out of both federal programs and mandated programs without enough federal funding. Twenty-one percent (21%) of men say states have the right to leave the United States, but just nine percent (9%) of women agree.

Sixty-three percent (63%) of all voters believe that it would be better for the country if most incumbents in Congress were defeated this November.

The number of voters nationwide (61%) who give Congress a poor job performance rating is now at its highest level in more than three years. More voters also think most members of Congress are corrupt.

Still, in a three-way congressional contest with a Tea Party candidate on the ballot, the Democrat earns 36% support. The GOP candidate comes in second with 25% of the vote, while the Tea Party candidate picks up 17%. In early December, the Tea Party candidate came in second, and the Republican finished third.

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