A majority of Americans say the United States is less respected in the world than it was in 2008

The Democracy Corps-Third Way survey found that by a 10-point margin - 51% to 41% - Americans think the standing of the U.S. dropped during the first 13 months of Obama's presidency. On the national security front, a massive gap has emerged, with 50% of likely voters saying Republicans would likely do a better job than Democrats, a 14-point swing since May 2009. Thirty-three percent favored Democrats. A May 2009 survey by the pollsters found the public saw the Democratic and Republican parties as equally able to handle national security (41% trusted Democrats more, and 43% trusted Republicans more.) On conducting the war on terrorism, the two parties were tied at 41%. In addition, the detention of terrorist suspects and the Obama proposal to prosecute suspects in civil trials in New York City, which was later abandoned, also have taken a toll on the president's approval ratings. Democracy Corps calls itself an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to making the government of the United States more responsive to the American people." It was founded in 1999 by former Clinton adviser James Carville and Stanley Greenberg, a leading Democratic pollster.