A Public Religion Research Institute survey is out and it is fascinating. Here are some of the highlights:
Americans are most concerned about issues surrounding the coronavirus pandemic and the upcoming presidential elections. Out of 14 issues included on the survey, majorities of Americans said that only four issues were critical: the coronavirus pandemic (60%), fairness of presidential elections (57%), health care (56%), and jobs and unemployment (52%). Less than half of Americans say that foreign interference in presidential elections (49%), crime (46%), terrorism (45%), racial inequality (43%), climate change (43%), or the growing gap between rich and poor (42%) are critical issues. Four in ten Americans or less say that the appointment of Supreme Court justices (40%), the federal deficit (36%), abortion (36%), immigration (33%), and trade agreements with other countries (23%) are critical issues.[3]
Democrats and Republicans appear to be living in separate worlds based on their issue priorities. The only issue which majorities of Democrats and Republicans agree is critical is the fairness of presidential elections (68% and 55%, respectively), though partisans likely have divergent views of what “fairness” means.
This one is very instructive: the only religious group that doesn’t care about the pandemic is white evangelicals. And they really don’t care about it.
How about this:
That is simply astonishing.
And here’s how the various religious groups will be voting. It’s not good news for Trump.
Trump won white mainline Protestants and white Catholics in 2016.
This is just depressing:
This is equally awful:
That one’s going to take some pondering. I assume that black men think it wasn’t a great idea to name a black woman simply because they think racists wouldn’t like it. They can’t believe that on the merits, right? I’m glad to see that 60+ percent of white women with college degrees think it was a good decision but I wonder the same thing about the other 40%. I know some personally who were very nervous about the choice because they worried racism and misogyny would help Trump.
But this really says it all about this election. Even people who like him think he is a dishonest, childish, selfish, immoral, phony.
The big finding here is not a surprise. White Evangelicals are Donald Trump’s greatest supporters. And Republicans who watch Fox News are completely brainwashed.