Quinnipiac University poll: Americans Approve of Democrat Policies. So far.
Nearly seven in ten Americans support Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package
At the beginning of 2021, as the chattering class begins to formulate battle plans for the midterm elections of next year, Democrat policies are winning in the court of public opinion. At least for for the immediate present.
And how could they not? Nancy Pelosi is to be sure a more appealing public figure than Senator No, Mitch McConnell. And Kevin “Starburst” McCarthy, now in a minority role in the House, has been ensorcelled in the matter of removing or not removing rightwing extremist Marjorie Taylor Greene from committee assignments. The Democrat strategy of making Greene a front and center issue has been criticized, justly, but not without some public success. She is now the very public face of a conspiracy side of the Republican party that is a political liability.
According to a new Quinnipiac University poll released on February 3rd, two weeks into the Biden Presidency, there is broad support for Democrats and Democrat party policies. Poll respondents — 61 – 36 percent — say that they support raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour. President Biden himself is at a 49 percent approval rating. Further, a majority of respondents -- 56 – 35 percent -- say President Biden is doing more to unite than to divide the country. Also, Nancy Pelosi, according to the poll, is the most popular American Congressional leader. And, rounding things off, nearly seven in ten Americans support Biden’s $1.9 trillion stimulus package. How much of this is as a result of Trump’s oppositional silence as a result of his social media ban and legal strategy of minimizing legal exposure ahead of the impeachment hearings?
There are also some disturbing signs in the poll that illustrate how the influence of Trump yet persists. For example, 25 percent of the polling set believe that COVID is problem but not a crisis, and a startling 6 percent believe that the virus, which has killed over 447,000 Americans since last March, is not a problem at all! 14 percent of respondents say that racial inequality is not a problem at all. And 34 percent of the respondents say that people who believe in conspiracy theories is at a crisis level, 41 percent say it is a problem but not a crisis and 21 percent, again, not a problem.
And some positive news — 64 percent say the Republican Party is moving in the wrong direction, with 25 percent say it is moving in the right direction. 37 percent approve of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, while 42 percent disapprove (20 percent didn’t offer an opinion). Contrast that with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has 21 percent approval, 67 percent disapproval (12 percent didn’t offer an opinion). House Speaker Nancy Pelosi — the most popular Congressional leader — has a 45 percent approval, compared with 47 percent disapprove (8 percent didn’t offer an opinion). Of Democrats in Congress, 44 percent approve, 46 percent disapprove (10 percent didn’t offer an opinion). Contrast that with Republicans in Congress, where 26 percent approve, 64 percent disapprove and 10 percent didn’t offer an opinion.
It is still very early for these initial poll results to have any bearing on the 2022 midterms. While there are no Democratic elected incumbents running in the 2022 Congressional midterms in states President Joe Biden lost, the road is uphill historically for the party in power. Ultimately it will all come down to eight states, three of which are states in which Biden underperformed, nationally. But the early good news is that if 2022 metastasizes into a referendum against Trumpism and QAnon, the initial numbers look good for the Democrats.
The full Quinnipiac poll here.