‘No going back’: pollster says establishment policies in GOP are dead, Trump-like policies preferred
Maria Wheeler
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A new Rasmussen poll found that GOP voters overwhelmingly support the policies of former President Donald Trump over those of traditional Republicans.
“There are two to three times as many people who support Trump-like policies over traditional Republicans,” said Rasmussen. “What this means is the policy civil war within the Republican party is over in terms of a policy approach, there’s no going back for the GOP to the former policies.”
The poll also found that President Biden’s approval rating is on the decline, dropping four points to 51%, the lowest recorded rating in his presidency. For the first time, the number of voters strongly disapproving of his performance (32%) is higher than those who strongly approve (29%).
This all-time low could be indicative of growing concerns over immigration and border control issues. “70% of voters believe illegal immigration and border control are a national security issue,” says Rasmussen. “Not only that, 58% believe drug cartels have more control on the border than the U.S. government.”
Among Republicans, 85% of those who support Trump-like policies disapprove of Biden’s performance overall, while only 53% of those who identify with more traditional Republican views are dissatisfied. Only 9% of Republicans who identify with Trump-like policies say that Biden has outperformed their expectations.
The decline in performance approval mirrors what President Obama experienced, with both presidents ranking high in voter approval at first but declining into their first summers as president, according to Rasmussen. He also notes that if Biden’s approval rating follows in the footsteps of President Obama’s, it will continue to decline in the coming months.
The poll was conducted over the period of July 8-10 and included a representative sample of 1,200 voters nationwide.
Recent polling also found a lack of optimism among voters about Biden’s ability to unify America. Rasmussen found that only 15% of voters think America will be more unified a year from now, and 32% expect further polarization by 2022.
The downturn in optimism is strongest among members of the president’s own party, with just 19% of Democrats confident that the nation will become more unified over the next year, as compared to 35% when Biden first took office.