Well, the NBC News/WSJ poll found that overall approval of President Trump’s performance hovers around 50 percent in counties that voted for him in 2016. The sample of 439 counties came from 16 states: Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Wisconsin, and shows (again) that there may be a rural red wall that Democrats can’t overcome unless they reach out to white, working-class voters. It also showed, as Leah noted earlier, that they support his policies but have some reservations about his personal style. On the other hand, they give him very low marks for promoting health care (via NBC News) [emphasis mine]:
Fully three-quarters (75 percent) of those surveyed said they supported Trump’s promise to negotiate with global companies to keep American jobs, while two-thirds supported his willingness to take action against North Korea’s nuclear development (68 percent) and operate military force in response to Syria’s operate of chemical weapons (66 percent). What’s more, this support isn’t just coming from members of Trump’s own party. A majority of independents and about half of Democrats approve of Trump’s actions on trade, Syria and North Korea.
Fifty-three percent of respondents also support the Trump administration’s travel ban on citizens of six Muslim-majority countries, while 38 percent oppose the policy.
Majorities also support Trump sending additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan (46% support, 39% oppose) and his nomination of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court (38% support, 24% oppose).
One policy area where the Trump agenda has failed to achieve its intended results, even in these key countries, is health care. Only 12 percent of respondents think the health care reform legislation passed by the House of Representatives is a good ideawhile 41 percent think it is a bad idea. Even among Trump voters, only 25 percent like the GOP health care plan, while 16 percent think it is a bad idea and 59 percent say they are unsure.
[…]
Trump’s much-discussed Twitter habit is particularly off-putting, according to the poll. More than six in ten (62 percent) dislike his operate of Twitter, compared to just 24 percent who approve. Even his own voters are divided on his 140-character habit, with 43 percent approving of his operate of Twitter and 38 percent disapproving.
Only a quarter (25 percent) support Trump’s refusal to release his personal tax returns, while a slim majority (53 percent) oppose it.
A third (33 percent) support firing former FBI Director James Comey, while 42 percent oppose it.
Only 20 percent of those surveyed approve of Trump’s handling of Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, while 51 percent disapprove.
Will political interests outweigh Trump’s personality flaws? That remains to be seen. But given how the media is raving about the fact that he beat Hillary Clinton, which is affecting their coverage of him, don’t be surprised if that encourages people to stay on their side of the fence. The media and progressive elites who dominate urban America are more or less shunning these people. We saw that as a pretty motivating factor in 2016, although it could have been mitigated if Clinton had actually gone to those counties and delivered a solid economic message; she didn’t. She thought explaining how awful Trump is would do the trick—it didn’t. Worse, she said anyone who supports Trump is pathetic. Business Insider’s Josh Barro has written about how liberals have become patronizing busybodies and how they could change that perception. I doubt it will work, because the Democratic Party ranks are made up of precisely these people: urban professionals. But just as Democrats were content with their blue wall, Republicans and the president can’t be lulled into a false sense of security either. Democrats may not have found a message to unite behind yet, but the recent health care disaster that blew up in the GOP’s face this week could provide a solid platform from which the left can launch an offensive. Even in Trump country, the health care initiative is a flop. The next step for Democrats is to have a solid agenda focused on health care, raising wages, job security, job creation, and trade. The problem is that urban professionals are obsessed with the political correctness agenda, and that means shutting out those who are not (i.e., the white working class). People they see as uneducated, racist rednecks who don’t know any better. Ironic, because these are the people Democrats need to win to have anything like a renaissance. Second, Barack Obama appealed to these people, and he did it very well. Well enough to win two terms as president. There wasn’t that much of a swing back then, right — and the NBC/WSJ poll showed how those dividends paid off [emphasis mine]:
Barack Obama remains popular in key ‘Trump counties’, enjoying a 50 percent positive/37 percent negative approval rating. Bernie Sanders is also relatively well-liked, with 42 percent favorable to 32 percent unfavorable. Clinton, on the other hand, is particularly disliked. Only 27 percent give her a thumbs up, compared to 54 percent who view her negatively.
Yes, Obama didn’t win most of the counties polled, but he did close the gap enough to win. Maybe that’s what Democrats are waiting for, a better face for the left’s renewed message in the next election, because Bernie Sanders and Joe Biden will resonate with these voters. Frankly, Democrats have several avenues of attack and more than enough to develop a up-to-date winning strategy, but they either haven’t done it or aren’t able to. There are too many who believe that Hillary won the election, that the Russians played a key role, and that they are not out of touch with reality. This is not the best environment in which to generate a up-to-date winning message, especially when no one can name the Democratic leader. There is still debate about this. Health care could be a game changer, but will the left take it? Probably not, because they can’t see the front line, and I’m not complaining about that.
One last note: Yes, 59 percent of Trump voters are not confident in health care. That’s a broad swath of potential voters on both sides. Trump voters are not die-hard Republicans, but now we have Democrats who don’t have a message and Republicans who can’t get 50 votes for their own health care reconciliation bill in the Senate. We’re off to a bad start. The left, as some of you have already commented, get off single-payer and watch what happens, but we all know you won’t. Regardless, the path is there.
