A majority of Americans believe the U.S. should focus more on issues at home and withdraw from foreign affairs, despite an increasing number of Americans believing the U.S. should be more engaged and take the lead when it comes to international events.

Just under two-thirds of Americans, 62%, believe the U.S. would be “better served by withdrawing from international affairs and focusing more attention on problems here at home,” according to the results of the Ronald Reagan Institute’s 2024 summer survey, which was shared exclusively with Fox News Sunday.

Despite that finding, the percentage of Americans who believe it’s important for the U.S. to be more engaged and take the lead in international events is on the rise, up 12 points in the last six months.

A majority, 54%, expressed support for a more engaged U.S. foreign policy, up from 42% in November. The latest figure includes 66% of Democrats and 49% of Republicans.

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“From this year’s Reagan Institute summer survey, we’re seeing an uptick in the numbers of Americans who really want to see and are seeking policies that reflect American leadership in the world, that reflects President Reagan’s principles of leadership, of strength on the global stage when it comes to the chaos and conflict that we’re seeing around the world,” Rachel Hoff, the policy director at the Ronald Reagan Institute, told Fox News Digital.

“The number of Americans seeking American leadership and engagement is at a five-year high,” she added.

Most Americans also said they believe U.S. involvement in international events is beneficial for both the United States (57%) and the world (61%).

Over three-fourths, 78%, of respondents indicated they agree that U.S. leadership and engagement in international affairs is “essential” for boosting the economy and securing favorable trade arrangements.

A similar amount of Americans, 77%, indicated they believe it is important for the U.S. to stand up for human rights and democracy around the world, while 86% indicated it was important for the U.S. to maintain a strong military that can maintain peace and prosperity both at home and around the world.

The poll comes amid continued debate over how involved the U.S. should be in defending Ukraine amid its war with Russia, with some arguing that the billions of dollars spent equipping the Ukrainian military would be better spent on domestic issues.

Down two percent since the same Reagan Institute survey last summer, 57% of Americans said they support sending military aid to Ukraine, compared to 32% who oppose it. Another 11% indicated they were unsure.

Americans also believe it is in the best interest of the U.S. that Ukraine win its conflict against Russia, with 75% saying it is important Ukraine win compared to 17% who indicated it was unimportant. There was no change in those percentages compared to last year’s survey.

Hoffman said the Reagan Institute’s data on Ukraine has stayed “remarkably consistent over time.”

“So we started asking questions about Ukraine, about American support and military aid for Ukraine’s efforts in their war against the Russian invasion, and those numbers have not shifted at all since 2022,” she said.

“Even with all the debate and discussion that we’re seeing in the media and on Capitol Hill about aid to Ukraine and the really important conversations that policy leaders are having, it’s really important to remember and recognize that the American people, in the middle of all those conversations, have made clear that they want to continue supporting America’s allies and our friends around the world that are standing up against aggression… and they want to do that by sending U.S. military aid to Ukraine.”

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An Israeli soldier attaches an Israeli flag on top of an armored personnel carrier (APC) near Israel’s border with Gaza on April 15, 2024. 

The survey also found that Americans believe Israel — a war-torn country that responded forcefully to the October 7, 2023, invasion by Hamas militants — should be supported by the U.S.

“Both Republicans and Democrats, in large numbers, want to support Israel in its fight against the Hamas terrorists in the Middle East,” Hoff said.

A majority of Americans, 56%, said they support sending aid to Israel, compared to 35% who said they oppose the effort. Another 68% said they support the U.S. sending missile defense systems to Israel to “help it defend against” drone or missile attacks.

“I think the more we drill down into what the American people want our government to be doing to support our allies and friends around the world, to push back on tyranny and terrorism and to support those fighting for freedom and democracy, those numbers only rise,” Hoff said.

Fifty-five percent of those surveyed also said they would support an Israeli counterattack against continued Iranian aggression, while 31% said they would oppose it.

Three-quarters of Americans, 75%, said they were concerned about humanitarian conditions in Gaza.

Seventy-four percent said they believe Israel’s war with Hamas matters to U.S. security and prosperity, compared to 73% who said the same for Ukraine’s war with Russia.

Americans also indicated concern over Chinese military build-up, with 82% saying they are “extremely” or “somewhat” concerned.

Other findings related to China included concern over the communist nation’s human rights violations (83%), technology theft (83%), overtaking the U.S. as the world’s superpower (75%), and the isolation of Taiwan (68%).

Based off previous Reagan Institute surveys, Hoff said public opinion on China “has been moving and shifting significantly over time” and that there’s an increasing number of Americans who are “seeing China as an adversary.”

“They’re concerned about, technology theft, economic practices, human rights abuses, abuses of the Chinese Communist Party, and they’re concerned about the Chinese military buildup,” she said.

President Biden meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 leaders’ summit in Bali, Indonesia, November 14, 2022. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo)

A slim majority, 51%, said they believe the social media app TikTok, which is owned by a Chinese company that is closely connected to the Chinese government, should be banned in the U.S. Another 39% percent said they oppose a ban of the app, while 10% said they were unsure.

The survey, which was conducted from May 20 to May 27, sampled 1,257 U.S. adults.

In the three years that Adel Hagekhalil has led California’s largest urban water supplier, the general manager has sought to focus on adaptation to climate change — in part by reducing reliance on water supplies from distant sources and investing in local water supplies.

His efforts to help shift priorities at the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which has traditionally focused largely on delivering imported water to the region, have won praise among environmental advocates who hope to reduce dependence on supplies from the Colorado River and Northern California.

However, now that Hagekhalil is under investigation for harassment allegations and has been placed on leave by the MWD board, some of his supporters say they’re concerned that his sidelining might interfere with the policies he has helped advance.

“I would hope this doesn’t mean that we undo the progress that’s been made since Adel came in,” said Conner Everts, executive director of the Southern California Watershed Alliance, who has supported Hagekhalil’s policies.

The accusations against Hagekhalil surfaced Thursday while he was traveling in Singapore for a water conference.

Chief Financial Officer Katano Kasaine made the allegations in a confidential letter to the board, which was leaked to the media. She said Hagekhalil has harassed, demeaned and sidelined her and created a hostile work environment.

Hagekhalil denied the accusations, saying he has always treated the staff with respect and professionalism, and that the claims amount to “disagreements on management decisions.”

The MWD board voted to place Hagekhalil on administrative leave for 90 days while Kasaine’s complaint and other allegations are investigated. In his place, the board temporarily appointed assistant general manager Deven Upadhyay, who has been at the agency for 29 years, as interim general manager.

Everts has for more than three decades been advocating for Southern California to reduce reliance on imported water supplies by boosting local supplies. He said he has been pleased to see Hagekhalil and MWD moving forward with plans for the country’s largest wastewater recycling facility in Carson, and working to develop a plan for adapting to climate change.

Everts said he hopes that whatever results emerge from the investigations, the agency doesn’t revert to an outmoded focus on imported water that he believes some “old guard” leaders of MWD still favor.

Everts, like many others who spoke at Thursday’s board meeting, said the accusations demand a fair and impartial investigation.

“Hopefully, Adel comes back and continues to lead in this direction. And if not, whoever would step in would do that,” Everts said. “Does the culture change of the agency continue to progress? That’s my question.”

MWD is the nation’s largest wholesale supplier of drinking water, serving cities and agencies that supply 19 million people across Southern California.

MWD Board Chair Adán Ortega Jr. said that while the board made “difficult decisions” regarding the allegations against Hagekhalil, “we maintain our commitment to the policies and direction of this organization.”

Ortega said he doesn’t expect any change in the district’s “current policy course.”

“Our task at hand is tackling climate change,” Ortega said in an interview with The Times. “Anybody that would challenge that is up against a pretty embedded policy framework for tackling climate change.”

Ortega was involved in selecting Hagekhalil, who previously worked for the city of Los Angeles and who was hired after a bitter struggle among board members in 2021. Ortega said his priorities as board chair have been the same priorities that Hagkhalil has been pursuing.

As for the accusations against Hagekhalil, Ortega said he was upset that someone leaked the confidential letter.

“I believe that whoever leaked it was trying to box in the board. But we’re not going to let them, and I don’t think it worked,” Ortega said.

He said all the initiatives that Hagekhalil was working on will continue under Upadhyay while the matters are investigated.

“The board drives the agenda,” he said. “I think the board has been united on things that Adel and I have both shared.”

Hagekhalil has led the agency at a time of major initiatives, including negotiations aimed at addressing water shortages on the Colorado River, plans for building the water recycling plant in Carson, and the MWD board’s consideration of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to build a $20-billion water tunnel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

Some of Hagekhalil’s supporters questioned why the matter was brought to the board while he was traveling, and suggested the public airing of grievances appeared to be aimed at pushing aside a leading advocate for transforming the district’s focus.

But Ortega said any speculation that placing Hagekhalil on leave might derail the MWD’s current policy agenda is unfounded.

“The board is fully organized in support of that agenda,” Ortega said. “So I don’t feel any nervousness or doubt about our continued policy direction.”

“It’s a mistake to think that the fate of our policy agenda rests on one person,” he added. “Nothing is changing in terms of the board’s organization or the items that we’re considering in future months, or the composition of the committees. All of that is intact. And so nothing changes.”

Still, some environmental advocates have said they’re concerned about a potential link between the surfacing of allegations against Hagekhalil and efforts by some within the agency to push for the proposed Delta Conveyance Project, a 45-mile tunnel that would create a second route to draw water from the Sacramento River into the aqueducts of the State Water Project. They pointed out that Kasaine currently serves as treasurer of the Delta Conveyance Design and Construction Authority, the entity that was created to finance the tunnel project.

“I think it is a calculated ambush that is designed to get the tunnel approved, over the objections of other members of the Metropolitan board,” said Patricia Schifferle, director of Pacific Advocates, an environmental consulting firm.

During an MWD committee meeting on Monday, supporters and opponents of the proposed tunnel debated the costs and benefits of the project.

Karla Nemeth, director of the State Department of Water Resources, told board members that the project is essential to improving the reliability of water supplies in the face of climate change, sea-level rise and a major earthquake.

Other supporters made similar arguments, while opponents argued that building the tunnel would harm the delta’s deteriorating ecosystem and would be more expensive than other water-supply alternatives.

The costs would be paid for by urban and agricultural water districts that decide to participate. The state recently released a cost-benefit analysis that is intended to provide information for local water agencies to consider.

The MWD would receive a large share of the water, and the board’s eventual decision on whether to participate is expected to be pivotal in determining whether the state’s plan goes forward.

The MWD board in 2020 agreed to contribute $160.8 million toward planning and pre-construction costs. District officials say the board could consider whether to provide additional funding for planning and pre-construction costs at the end of this year, and it will likely be several years before there is a decision on long-term financial participation.

When the state’s cost-benefit analysis was released last month, Hagekhalil said: “The questions are, how can this project be implemented, what kind of assurances can we have in the resilience it provides to the Delta and our water supply future, and at what price?”

Leaders of several environmental groups said they were disappointed to see Hagekhalil placed on administrative leave before the accusations against him have been investigated.

“It is critically important and appropriate for MWD to take these allegations seriously and we applaud the agency’s decision to investigate the claims made, so that the board can have an accurate understanding of what has been happening among the organization’s senior leadership,” said Bruce Reznik, executive director of the group LA Waterkeeper. “That said, the public needs more information to ensure the complete independence of this review.”

He said any action against Hagekhalil should have come after an independent investigation.

Reznik called Hagekhalil a “visionary, inclusive and transparent leader” who is helping the agency reform its approach to adapt to the effects of climate change.

“He has been vocal about his vision and plans to transform the agency,” Reznik said. “That focus must continue at MWD.”

A Texas political candidate has been arrested on charges of sending fake hate messages to himself on social media.

Taral Patel, the Democratic candidate for Fort Bend Precinct 3 Commissioner, was arrested by Texas Rangers and is being charged with Online Impersonation and Misrepresentation of Identity.

Authorities allege that Patel spent months sending a stream of racist and derogatory comments to himself, impersonating a supporter of incumbent Republican Commissioner Andy Meyers.

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According to the arrest record for Patel, the investigation was launched in October 2023 after Meyers requested authorities to look into who was responsible for the vitriolic comment made at Patel.

Patel previously posted a collage of hateful comments ostensibly sent by Meyers supporters, claiming the messages represented a “deep and misguided fear” among the Republican Party.

“As your Democratic candidate for County Commissioner, I am always open to criticism of my policy positions and stances on issues,” Patel said in the September 2023 post on Facebook. “However, when my Republican opponents supporters’ decide to hurl racist, anti-immigrant, Hinduphobic, or otherwise disgusting insults at my family, faith community, colleagues, and me – that crosses a line.”

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Fort Bend County Commissioner W. A. “Andy” Meyers, Precinct 3, participates in the commissioners’ court meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019, in Richmond. (Brett Comer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

Law enforcement reported that Patel used an image of a real Fort Bend resident as his profile picture without the individual’s consent.

Fort Bend County Republican Party Chairman Bobby Eberle released a statement reacting to Patel’s arrest, calling the situation “deeply concerning.” 

“Whether Republican or Democrat, such tactics should be unequivocally condemned by all who value integrity and accountability in politics,” Eberle said. “This is not a partisan issue, and the good people of Fort Bend County should be able to trust that when allegations are made, they are sincere.”

He concluded, “Fort Bend County residents deserve better leadership than someone who will create a fake account and post manufactured racist attacks — attempting to turn neighbor against neighbor — for political gain.”