The 2025 Reagan National Defense Survey is an annual public opinion poll that measures Americans' understanding of key defense and national security issues. The survey is a vital tool for understanding our nation's challenges and where public opinion stands. 

As if you needed a survey to tell you the obvious, the mood of the country remains circumspect, with only 38% of us believing we are on the right track vs. 58% who feel we are on the wrong track. This is buttressed by the fact that about 50% believe our foreign policy and national defense are effective. Seventy-five percent don't think we are on the right track with our economy, the single highest number of interest. Other areas of concern for most people include health care, political polarization, border security and crime. 

Seventy-seven percent of us have confidence in the military, 44% in President Trump, 30% in Congress, 47% in our Supreme Court, 42% in the news media and 71% in our police. Eighty-one percent believe our military will keep us safe and 78% think we can win a foreign war. The American public is less concerned about DEI in the military: only 25% believe it is a significant problem, yet 47% say its elimination in the military is a good idea. Forty-eight percent of Americans support restoring a "warrior ethos."

Sixty-one percent agree with sending troops to our borders to deter illegal immigration, and 55% support sending the Guard to crime-ridden cities to restore order and safety. Fifty-nine percent of us supported last summer's strikes against nuclear facilities in Iran. A robust 62% of those surveyed are in favor of continuing to strike drug traffickers in South America and the Caribbean. Fifty percent reject trans people in the military, and 62% believe that standards for men and women should be equal and not reduced for the primary purpose of advancing women. Fifty-nine percent of us would encourage someone we love or care about to join the military. All these important metrics are noticeably higher since President Trump was elected.

The MAGA movement preaches America First and no foreign entanglements. Our president has threaded the needle and is using different levers of power than previous leaders to accomplish worthy international goals. But there is a limit to how "hands off" we can be while protecting our national interest. Sixty-four percent of us desire greater engagement in the world, a significant increase from prior years. Forty-nine percent of Americans favor bringing our war-fighting assets closer to home and away from our traditional areas of operation. Eighty percent feel our military is more powerful than any other, with 87% believing that's the way it should be, and 71% of those polled thought that a strong military translates into peace regardless of how our military is deployed.

Another major deviation between public opinion and reality: 44% of us believe the military should be able to fight two peer enemies simultaneously. We have not had that capability for a generation, which might lead some to think that our leadership has been derelict in its primary mission of protecting the American people. A high 68% must believe we are at risk, as they support the Golden Dome concept recently unveiled by President Trump. 

Eighty percent of Americans seem to understand the dilemma we've gotten ourselves into with rare earth minerals. It makes me wonder what other strategic minerals, elements, and chemicals might also be problematic? We used to have a strategic stockpile of everything that was vital to us. What happened to those stockpiles?

China, at 48% and Russia, at 26% are the top threats to the country, according to poll respondents. Interestingly, 2% thought Israel was the top threat, and another 3% thought we are our own worst threat! To emphasize that point, 49% of respondents stated that our most significant threat comes from within the country, vs. 45% from outside the country. The respondent’s political affiliations:

*Democrat—31%

*Republican—35%

*Independent—31%

Graphic: PLA Soldiers. Wikimedia Commons. DOD. Public Domain.

Sixty-eight percent have a favorable opinion of NATO, the highest in quite a few years. Seventy-six percent would agree to an Article 5 response if a fellow NATO member were attacked. As for China, survey participants found it challenging to focus on a single issue that mattered most to them, validating the idea that many people have a visceral rather than nuanced view of why China is a threat. Few had doubts about China's aggressive tendencies. Seventy-seven percent of respondents said it was important for the US military to defend Taiwan, and we should recognize it as a sovereign country. Many respondents believe we are currently stronger than China on only three of ten metrics, including overall military strength, the Navy and the Air Force. Seventy-five percent of Americans don't want any Chinese tech embedded in our critical systems.

Sixty-two percent of Americans want Ukraine to win its war, but 11% want Russia to win. Sixty-four percent support sending weapons to Ukraine, with 45% believing in "Ukraine's defense of its full territorial sovereignty until all Russian-occupied territory is liberated." Seventy percent distrust any agreement with Russia and 65% of Americans support supplying Ukraine with long-range weapons such as Tomahawks. 

Turning to the subject of Israel, 50% support and 45% oppose sending weapons to Israel. This is a massive turnaround from past surveys and reflects the domination of the left's narrative on this subject. There is little belief that Hamas will disarm.

Fifty-four percent of Americans support using whatever force is necessary against Iran to prevent it from acquiring nuclear weapons. Strong majorities would use whatever course of action worked, from negotiation to American boots on the ground.

Surveys such as this one, while helpful, are subject to rapid change and revision because they don't measure facts but opinions and inclinations. Still, the NDS is a critical document that many people read and incorporate into their thinking and planning.

Author, Businessman, Thinker, and Strategist. Read more about Allan, his background, and his ideas to create a better tomorrow at www.1plus1equals2.com.