Survey Says is a weekly column rounding up three of a very powerful polling tendencies or knowledge factors you might want to learn about. You’ll additionally discover data-based updates on previous Day by day Kos reporting, plus a vibe test on a pattern that’s driving politics.
People don’t again Trump the Imperialist
President Donald Trump needs to purchase—or take by pressure—Greenland, Canada, the Gaza Strip, and the Panama Canal. “We will own it,” Trump stated of Gaza, together with all of the trademark coverage particulars he’s recognized for (none).
However People aren’t right here for it.
A new ballot from Information for Progress finds that seemingly voters largely oppose the U.S. taking possession of every location. Voters are shut to separate on the Panama Canal (41% help, 46% oppose), which the U.S. turned over to the Panamanians on the finish of 1999. However in relation to the opposite places, it’s not even shut: Majorities oppose the U.S. taking Greenland, Canada, and most starkly, Gaza. Solely 23% need the U.S. to regulate Gaza, whereas 62% oppose that concept.
And regardless of Trump’s flirtation with deploying U.S. troops to take Gaza, even a majority of Republican-likely voters (52%) oppose his thought.
In fact, Trump’s territorial expansionism doesn’t finish there. On the primary day of his new time period, he signed an govt order to rename the Gulf of Mexico because the “Gulf of America” (and one other order to make Feb. 9 “Gulf of America Day,” as a result of every thing should be this silly).
A new ballot from Marquette College Legislation College—probably the greatest within the polling recreation—finds that simply 29% help Trump’s “Gulf of America” rebrand, whereas a staggering 71% oppose it. Whereas 57% of Republicans help it (due to course they do), solely 16% of independents and 4% of Democrats do.
With numbers like that, Trump actually ought to’ve simply gone along with his first plan: to rename it the Gulf of Trump and dye the water gold.
Billionaires, billionaires, billionaires—you and me are via
Billionaire Elon Musk delivered his first Oval Workplace handle this previous Tuesday, regardless of, you recognize, not being president. And there’s a robust probability that the Tesla man is delusional about his enchantment to the American public—as a result of billionaires, properly … People aren’t so sizzling on them.
Seventy-three p.c of seemingly voters assume billionaires have an excessive amount of affect over the federal authorities, in response to a new ballot from Information for Progress. That features majorities of Democrats (80%), independents or third-party voters (80%), and Republicans (63%).
In terms of Musk himself, not solely do sturdy majorities of Democrats (79%) and independents and third-party voters (65%) consider he has an excessive amount of affect, even 1 in 3 Republicans thinks so.
And that tracks with public opinion about billionaires typically. New polling from YouGov finds that 55% of People assume the federal government ought to attempt to shut the wealth hole between the richest and poorest People, whereas simply 22% assume the federal government shouldn’t attempt to.
Even wilder, 49% of People assume the federal government ought to “try to reduce the share of wealth” held by American billionaires. This phrasing is extra radically progressive because it focuses on taking cash away from the ultrarich and, in contrast to the earlier query, doesn’t point out poorer People in any respect. And but even 1 in 3 Republicans nonetheless helps this sort of governmental motion. Solely 27% of People oppose it.
To be honest, a number of respondents certainly assume this sort of wealth discount could be used to learn these with much less cash. (I.e., if the ultrarich’s share of wealth lowers, then the less-rich sees their share of it rise.)
But it surely’s additionally doable that People simply don’t like billionaires. Take heed, Musk.
5 years of COVID-19
COVID-19 has claimed greater than 1.2 million People’ lives since Jan. 1, 2020, in response to the Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention. And whereas the pandemic has largely light as a well being menace, its injury to American households continues to today, in response to a important new research by the Pew Analysis Heart that displays on 5 years of COVID-19.
About 1 in 4 People say the pandemic took a significant toll on them, and almost 1 in 2 stated it took a minor toll. In contrast with the general public at giant, People beneath the age of fifty are considerably extra more likely to say it took a significant toll on them, as are Hispanic People.
Whereas 44% of People say they’ve principally recovered from the toll the pandemic took on them, 1 in 4 have solely considerably recovered, and 6% haven’t recovered in any respect.
The pandemic indisputably furthered the partisan divide, from Republicans’ rage at fundamental well being precautions like masking and vaccination to Democrats’ fury at Trump’s refusal to take the pandemic severely. And Pew’s knowledge displays that divide rising throughout 2020. For example, in March 2020, comparable shares of Democrats (74%) and Republicans (84%) stated that the CDC was doing a superb or good job at managing the disaster. Nevertheless, by January 2022, simply 26% of Republicans had the identical opinion, whereas Democrats’ view largely hadn’t modified (69%).
So it is smart that 72% of People agree the pandemic drove the nation additional aside, in response to Pew’s newest knowledge.
Nevertheless, greater than 1 in 10 People assume the pandemic principally introduced the nation collectively (sure, actually), and one other 16% say it didn’t have an effect on issues both method. But it surely’s doable that these of us—a mixed 27%—are most of the similar ones who say the pandemic took no toll on them by any means (25%).
Any updates?
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Trump and co. are testing the waters of a constitutional disaster, suggesting they could disobey courtroom orders of their pursuit of smothering the federal authorities—however they may face a giant public backlash for it. Fifty-seven p.c of People assume a decide’s order trumps a president’s, with solely 21% considering the alternative, in response to a brand new YouGov ballot. (And sure, that 21% is basically made up of Republicans, who’d certainly have a special opinion if a Democrat had been scribbling out orders within the White Home.)
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Eggs! You know ’em, you love ’em, you can’t afford ’em—and Trump doesn’t care, as Day by day Kos has coated totally. And people skyrocketing costs aren’t escaping People, 61% of whom have seen egg costs rising “a lot,” in response to a brand new YouGov ballot. One other 20% have seen “a little” value improve.
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Since Democrat Kamala Harris misplaced final 12 months’s presidential election, many have puzzled if she’ll run for workplace once more, presumably in California’s 2026 governor’s race. A brand new Emerson Faculty ballot for The Hill and Inside California Politics has excellent news for her: 57% of California Democrats say they’d help her if she ran for governor. Her closest competitor? Former Rep. Katie Porter, a whiteboard aficionado who sits at 9%.
Vibe test
Although it’s been 5 years since COVID-19 hit the general public consciousness, it’s simply now been three years since People stopped worrying a lot about it. Jan. 17, 2022, was the final time extra registered voters had been involved a few native COVID-19 outbreak than weren’t, in response to knowledge from Civiqs.
Curiously, although, the online degree of concern has lately ticked up from its nadir of -71 proportion factors in Might 2024. It’s now -55 factors. Maybe fears round chicken flu have gotten of us apprehensive about outbreaks extra typically. It may be a cyclical factor since concern additionally rose final winter.
