A recent national defense survey reveals Americans are becoming worried about global threats – and worse, they are concerned about the U.S. military’s ability to succeed in conflicts abroad.
The 2025 Reagan National Defense Survey took place between Oct. 23 and Nov. 3. A total of 984 responses were obtained through live telephone interviews, while an additional 1,523 responses were collected online, resulting in 2,507 respondents overall. One aspect of the survey revealed that only 49% of those surveyed think the U.S. military can win a war overseas, while just 45% believe it can effectively deter foreign aggression.
The particular question of whether the U.S. could win a war abroad aligns with a similar query posed in a small, independent, unscientific survey recently carried out by this writer. While the sample size was significantly smaller compared to that of the Ronald Reagan Institute’s poll of the general population, the smaller survey’s participants were all currently serving members of the U.S. military, including active-duty personnel, Reserve and National Guard members.
When asked if the U.S. could win a conflict against a near-peer adversary such as China, Iran, North Korea or Russia, WND reported that 49 out of 66 (74%) members of the U.S. military answered “No.” Likewise, as reported last year, when a similar sample of currently serving members of the military, excluding civilians, was asked the same question in 2023, 188 of the 229 (82%) respondents replied “No.”
The question naturally arises: Is it concerning that individuals within the U.S. military appear to have less faith in their own institution than the general public does?
WorldNetDaily spoke to Air Force Col. (Ret.) Rob Maness, a former bomber squadron commander who served the U.S. military for more than 30 years.
“What is troubling to me is the disagreement between those serving and the Reagan survey universe,” said Maness. “To have [half the surveyed] civilian population believe we can win if nearly three quarters of [actively serving] military think we can’t – puts us all in danger.” He then pointed out, “Civilians control the military – but service members get to live with their decisions.”
Despite the limited number of people surveyed by the author, Maness deemed it an “accurate” representation, explaining: “We haven’t won a war outright in decades and even when we did, like the 2001-2005 period in OEF (Operation Enduring Freedom), the civilian decision makers caused a massive loss.”
“American civilian leaders need to rethink how and why they commit our forces to war,” Maness argued. “The bottom line is, we should only go to war over our own vital interests and commit to complete victory when we do.”
