Questions - National Debt - July 22-23, 2011

National Survey of 1,000 Likely Voters
Conducted July 22-23, 2011
By Rasmussen Reports

1* Suppose in the race for Congress you had a choice between a candidate who promised to vote against all tax hikes and another candidate who said that a balanced approach including spending cuts and increased tax revenue is needed to reduce the federal debt. Other things being equal, which candidate would you be more likely to support?

2* Suppose at some point in the future that the federal budget is balanced and even produces a small surplus. There would still, however, be a huge federal debt accumulated from earlier years. If there is ever a federal budget surplus, should the money be used to pay down the federal debt, to cut taxes, or to increase government spending?

NOTE: Margin of Sampling Error, +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence