There are some new polls out today, one of which sent me into a depressive funk when I read it this morning. That would be this AP poll:
As armed National Guard troops patrol the nation’s capital as part of an unprecedented federal takeover of Washington’s police department, handling crime is now a relative strength for President Donald Trump, according to the latest AP-NORC poll.
Americans are generally not happy about the Republican president’s handling of issues like immigration and the economy but are more positive about his tough-on-crime approach, according to the survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research.
Indeed, the vast majority of Americans, 81%, see crime as a “major problem” in large cities — a concern Trump has seized on as he has deployed the National Guard to the District of Columbia and threatened to expand that model to cities across the country. Despite that perception, data shows that violent crime in D.C. is at a 30-year low. But Trump’s approach appears to be helping him, at least for the moment: His overall approval rating has increased slightly, from 40% in July to 45% now.
[…]
About half of U.S. adults, 53%, say they approve of Trump’s handling of crime, the poll finds.
That’s higher than his approval rating on the economy, immigration and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine — which are in line with his overall approval rating.
Trump’s approach on crime is similarly popular among white and Hispanic adults, with roughly half in each group saying they approve of the way he’s handling the issue. Black adults, however, are substantially less likely to say they’re on board with Trump’s approach to crime, with just 27% in favor.
Trump also garners much stronger support from independents on crime than on other issues. Roughly half of independents approve of his handling of crime, compared with about 3 in 10 who approve of his handling of the economy, immigration and the Russia-Ukraine war.
It’s caravans and eggs all over again. Yes there is crime in America’s cities. Much less than there used to be but no it hasn’t been eradicated because it will never be eradicated in a free society. Not that many of our fellow Americans seem to want a free country anymore. They yearn for a police state that will punish their enemies — us.
Sending in the troops to make Trump and his MAGA cult get all tingly down there is just another way of creating “vibes” to justify his reality show. And, according to that poll, it’s working, even as they aren’t quite sure that sending in troops is the answer.
The Quinnipiac poll tells a slightly different story that isn’t quite so depressing. It doesn’t specifically ask if people think crime is a “major problem” but their numbers don’t indicate that Trump is gaining support because of it:
In the wake of President Donald Trump’s decision to send National Guard troops to Washington D.C. in an effort to reduce crime, voters 56 – 41 percent oppose the move, according to a Quinnipiac (KWIN-uh-pea-ack) University national poll of registered voters released today.
There are wide partisan and gender differences.
Republicans (86 – 12 percent) support the president’s decision to deploy the National Guard to the nation’s capital to reduce crime, while Democrats (93 – 5 percent) and independents (61 – 34 percent) oppose it.
Men are split about the president’s decision, with 50 percent supporting it and 47 percent opposing it, while women (63 – 33 percent) oppose it.
Thirty-seven percent of voters approve of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president, while 55 percent disapprove. In Quinnipiac University’s July 16 poll, 40 percent of voters approved and 54 percent disapproved.
In today’s poll, Republicans (84 – 9 percent) approve, while Democrats (98 – 1 percent) and independents (58 – 31 percent) disapprove.
They found that only 42% approve of Trump’s handling of crime which is more like it. And he only has a 37% approval rating which is a hell of lot better than 45%.
Let’s hope that AP poll is the outlier. We should know in the next few days as more polling comes in.