Poll: Slim Majority Opposes National Emergency Declaration

Fifty-one percent of voters oppose President Donald Trump’s decision to declare a national emergency along the southern border in order to allow his administration to shift money to build the wall that Congress refused to fund, according to a new Politico/Morning Consult poll released on Wednesday.

Only 39 percent back the president’s declaration, while 10 percent were undecided.

The percentage of those who “strongly oppose” Trump’s decision (41 percent) is greater than the combined share of those who “strongly support” (26 percent) or “somewhat support” (13 percent) the declaration of a national emergency.

Other results from the survey show:

• Seventy-seven percent of Republicans back Trump’s decision, with 18 percent opposing it.
• Eighty-one percent of Democrats and 52 percent of independents oppose Trump declaring the national emergency.
• Voters are split over the border wall itself, with 45 percent supporting it and 47 percent against it.
• Fifty percent say Trump’s emergency declaration to build the wall is “an abuse of power,” while only 37 percent say it isn’t.
• Trump’s overall approval rating fell three percentage points from last week to 42 percent, with 53 percent disapproving of the job he is doing.

The survey was conducted February 15-19, beginning after the president announced last Friday that he would use the emergency declaration to build the wall. The poll surveyed 1,914 registered voters and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.

• Poll: 61 Percent Disapprove of Emergency Declaration
• CNN: Trump's Average Approval Rating Slips to 37 Percent