Tag: gallup poll
proud boys

Gallup Finds GOP Image Tanking Fast — Due To Republican Defections

Reprinted with permission from Daily Kos

Americans' views of the Republican Party have taken a serious hit ever since the November election and the party's repeated efforts to overturn the election results, according to new polling from Gallup.

Just 37 percent of adults say they have a favorable view of the party, a precipitous six-point slide in just a few months from the 43 percent who viewed it positively in November. In the same period, the Democratic Party gained a few points in favorability, with 48 percent of respondents now viewing the party favorably. That gives Democrats what Gallup calls a "rare double-digit advantage in favorability."

But what is perhaps most striking is where the GOP is bleeding support from—its own ranks. "Since November, the GOP's image has suffered the most among Republican Party identifiers, from 90 percent favorable to 78 percent. Independents' and Democrats' opinions are essentially unchanged," according to Gallup. That image problem isn't merely theoretical; it has already resulted in tens of thousands of GOP defections across the country since November as conservative voters officially switch their party affiliations to something other than Republican.

On the flip side, Democrats' gain in favorability has come mostly from independents, whose positive views of party have increased by seven points since November, from 41 percent to 48 percent.

The GOP has "often" sunk into sub-40 territory, according to Gallup. When Donald Trump forced a lengthy government shutdown over his border wall in January 2019, for instance, GOP favorability fell to 38 percent. But news of the party's plummeting image comes right as GOP lawmakers rally around Trump—the main driver of their recent disfavored status—to prevent his conviction on impeachment charges.

Historically, the party that initiates impeachment proceedings takes a political hit. But Trump and his flagrant efforts to subvert the will of the people have proven to be historically unpopular, and Democrats are actually gaining in popularity due to their efforts to hold Trump accountable and safeguard American democracy.

Republicans, on the other hand, are sticking with Trump no matter the consequences because they simply can't imagine a world in which they have to appeal to anything beyond white identity to win elections.

Donald Trump

Gallup Poll: Trump And Congressional Approval Ratings Plummet

Both President Donald Trump's and Congressional approval ratings have plummeted in the first half of December, according to a new Gallup poll.

Trump's approval rating has dipped to 39 percent, a 7 point decrease from the last Gallup survey, while Congressional satisfaction dropped 15%, the lowest rating for the 116th Congress, according to Gallup.

The president began December by ramping up political attacks while also increasing his threats to American democracy. His erratic behavior has even started to worry Trump's aides and his closest allies, leading to a "heated" Oval Office meeting with far-right conspiracists Michael Flynn and Sidney Powell. In that meeting Flynn proposed "martial law" to overturn the free and fair election that Joe Biden won by millions of votes.

Meanwhile, December was also a tumultuous month for Congress, as members bickered over a yearly defense spending bill (NDAA), a budget for FY 2021, and much needed COVID-19 relief. Late last night, right before a midnight deadline, Trump finally signed a joint bill which included COVID-19 relief and next year's budget. He also vetoed the defense bill, which Congress is expected to overturn.

Though American's moods are souring towards the current government, the Biden administration is receiving high marks for handling the transition. According to Gallup, nearly two-thirds of respondents reported they "approve" of Biden's actions during the transition.

immigrants

New Polling Confirms Americans Welcome Immigrants More Than Ever

Reprinted with permission from Alternet

Here's more of that other "Trump Effect" we've talked about before: new polling from Pew Research this week continues to confirm that Americans have only become more welcoming of immigrants and refugees since 2016 and Donald Trump's ensuing xenophobic presidency.

"In 2016 voters were about evenly divided in the share saying that the growing number of newcomers strengthens American society," Pew said, finding that 46 percent of all voters agreed with the statement. Four years later, that number has now surged to 60 percent. Americans "across the political spectrum have shifted in a more liberal direction in this domain," researchers said.

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Overwhelming Majority Of Americans Oppose Trump’s Transgender Troop Ban

Overwhelming Majority Of Americans Oppose Trump’s Transgender Troop Ban

No matter how you slice it, Americans hate Trump’s transgender troop ban.

A new poll from Gallup found that, except for Republicans, everyone surveyed backs the right of openly transgender troops to serve in the military.

Overall, 71 percent of people who were asked whether they favored or opposed allowing openly transgender men and women to serve in the military said they favored that right.

However, breaking down the data makes the breadth of the support even more evident. Among Democrats, 88 percent support transgender troops serving. The number is almost as high for people who consider themselves independents  — 78 percent.

Veterans favor allowing openly transgender people to serve by a substantial majority of 56 percent, while non-veterans clock in at 73 percent.

Women support transgender troop service more than men — 79 percent versus 64 percent — but both display solid support.

Finally, a majority of Americans across every age group also agree transgender people should be allowed to serve.

In fact, the only group surveyed where support for transgender troops didn’t break 50 percent was Republicans, but even there, a substantial portion — 43 percent — are in favor of their service.

And it isn’t just polls that reflect strong American support. National Guard leaders in five states are defying Trump’s ban and allowing openly transgender troops to serve. Former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis begged him to drop the ban. The American Medical Association said there was “no medically valid reason” for Trump’s ban.

All of this just shows how out of step Republicans are. They’re following Trump’s lead in pushing his hateful ban, and they’ve never stopped to consider if that is what their constituents actually want.

Instead, they’ve just tried to block the House from defunding enforcement of the ban. 182 Republicans voted against a Democratic measure that would have stopped the Pentagon from using federal funds to implement the ban.

Americans oppose Trump and they oppose his bigoted policies. The question is whether the Republicans who supposedly represent them will stop blindly following Trump and implement policies their constituents really want.

Published with permission of The American Independent.