Are Americans this gullible, or just not paying attention?

White House Ethics, Honesty Questioned
By Richard Morin and Claudia Deane
Washington Post
Sunday, October 30, 2005
A majority of Americans say the indictment of senior White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby signals broader ethical problems in the Bush administration, and nearly half say the overall level of honesty and ethics in the federal government has fallen since President Bush took office, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News survey.
The poll, conducted Friday night and yesterday, found that 55 percent of the public believes the Libby case indicates wider problems "with ethical wrongdoing" in the White House, while 41 percent believes it was an "isolated incident." And by a 3 to 1 ratio, 46 percent to 15 percent, Americans say the level of honesty and ethics in the government has declined rather than risen under Bush.

I read this poll result with dismay. Although the story is trumpeting that a "majority" believe there are "wider problems," I think the real news here is that 41% of Americans actually believe that this is an "isolated incident." That's a lot of people writing this off. Scary.