Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures — and to a certain extent, they also make for extraordinary bedfellows. The US and the states have locked themselves down to varying extents for more than a month, and one might think that would be long enough to develop some pushback against the restrictions. At the very least, the span might be long enough to return people to their normal political identities.
That could be true in regard to Donald Trump. In today’s poll from the Washington Post and University of Maryland, Trump’s approval rating on handling the coronavirus has more or less settled down to the same range as his overall approval ratings:
The public continues to have a somewhat negative view of Trump’s handling of the crisis, with 52 percent saying that the way he’s dealt with it is either “not so good” or “poor,” and 47 percent saying that the job he has done is “excellent” or “good.”
The president’s ratings are similar, though less clearly negative, than in the Post-U. Md. poll last week — 54 percent rated him negatively then, and slightly more rate him positively now, although the change is not statistically significant. This week’s survey was taken Tuesday through Sunday, overlapping Trump’s suggestion on Thursday that it would be worth exploring whether injecting disinfectant into people’s bodies could combat the virus. That remark prompted makers of disinfectants and public health units to warn people against doing so.
Partisan differences are especially sharp in the ratings of the president, with 9 in 10 Republicans saying he’s doing a good or excellent job compared with less than 2 in 10 Democrats. Independents rate him 54 percent negative and 45 percent positive. Among all registered voters, his ratings are 54 percent negative and 45 percent positive.
Of far more interest, however, is that public support for COVID-19 policies remain strong, especially regarding Trump’s suspension of nearly all immigration to the US. The move prompted knee-jerk opposition from Trump’s political foes, but voters seem very much in tune with the president. By an almost 2:1 margin, Americans support that suspension, with significant backing in most demos:
Last week, the president indicated that he planned to halt the influx of immigrants, although the order he signed fell short of that kind of blanket ban. Still, he was met with criticism from immigration advocates. Former vice president Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, attacked Trump’s initial call for a ban on almost all immigration as a distraction from the president’s oft-criticized handling of the pandemic.
The Post-U. Md. poll finds that 65 percent of Americans support a temporary halt on nearly all immigration during the coronavirus outbreak, with 34 percent opposed. Republicans overwhelmingly support the idea, with 83 percent in favor. Democrats, meanwhile, are split, with 49 percent supporting and 49 percent opposing. Among independents, 67 percent say they support such a move.
When leaners are added, Democrats support the policy 53/46. In fact, a majority of self-described liberals also support it (54/45) as do moderates (64/34). Each age demo has support at over 60%; indeed, there is nothing but statistical noise separating 18-39YOs (63/34) from seniors (66/34) on this point. Hispanics give the highest support of the ethnic demos to “temporarily blocking nearly all immigration” (69/30), in an even more extraordinary outcome.
Is this just Trump exploiting fear to push for his own policy preference? Not really, at least if you believe what the respondents tell the pollster. The support for this policy is all but identical between those who are very or somewhat worried about contracting COVID-19 (65/34) and those who either aren’t too worried or worried at all about it (65/33). The policy gets that level of support because it’s a common sense move in a pandemic. Why would Americans expect to have the door to the country left open when doors to our economy are being forced close by state governments?
To emphasize this point, respondents give nearly the same level of support to the ongoing lockdown measures, although that does change a bit more on the worries of those respondents. Restaurant and retail restrictions get 66/17 support, with another 16% saying they need to be restricted further. That becomes 73/9/17 among those more worried about contracting COVID-19, but 56/29/14 among those less concerned. Restrictions on the size of public gatherings get similar numbers. Support among the less-worried is still a majority and roughly 2:1 in favor, but the more people move to the “less worried” category, the weaker that will become — and should become. Why would we support these kinds of restrictions if we’re not worried about the contagion, after all?
The one nagging question might be why Trump’s approval ratings are stuck so low even though his policies and recommendations are broadly accepted by voters. Governors seem to be benefitting, at least generally, with a 77/22 approval rating and little partisan division. Even with the 2:1 support on his temporary immigration ban, though, Trump doesn’t seem to have room to move out of his narrow approval ban. Most people already either love him or hate him, and except for brief moments in emergencies, few are willing to change their minds. If Democrats mistake that for a repudiation of Trump’s policies, however, they will get a very unpleasant surprise in six months.
