Forty-seven percent said they believed Bush exaggerated the evidence, while 48 percent said he presented the most complete information he had.

Nor has the drop in trust shaken Americans\ufffd underlying belief that the war was proper. More than two-thirds \ufffd 69 percent \ufffd continue to believe the United States \ufffdshould have taken military action,\ufffd down a statistically insignificant 2 points from May. Twenty-seven percent said it should not have taken military action.

But respondents faulted Democrats for making too much of the issue. More than half, 56 percent, said the Democrats were \ufffdplaying politics\ufffd by accusing Bush of making misleading claims, compared with 30 percent who said the criticism was valid.