Polling results show more Americans blame President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers rather than Democrats for the government shutdown. (Photo: AFP/Timothy A. Clary)
Despite GOP Efforts to Blast Dems, Americans Blame Republicans for #TrumpShutdown
Critics urge Democrats to "stand strong" while calling on Republicans to end the shutdown "with a bipartisan solution for Dreamers, CHIP, the military, and disaster relief."
Despite efforts by President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers to blame Democrats for the government shutdown--deemed the #TrumpShutdown by critics--polling shows American voters hold Republicans and the president responsible for failing to reach an agreement on Friday to keep the federal government funded.
The Politico/Morning Consult poll (pdf) released Sunday, which showed that more American voters blame Republicans than Democrats, echoed results from a Washington Post/ABC poll published Friday. The Politico poll found that nearly two-thirds of U.S. voters support shutting down the government over disagreements about long-term funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which expired at the end of September.
Meanwhile, although 84 percent (pdf) of voters support Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)--which the Trump administration terminated last year but a federal judge recently reinstated--voters are split over whether the DACA debate warrants a shutdown. Republicans have been criticized for their numerous attempts to use DACA recipients, or Dreamers, as "bargaining chips" to implement tougher immigration enforcement measures.
Ahead of a Senate vote scheduled for around noon on Monday, advocates for Dreamers and CHIP urged lawmakers to pass a "bipartisan solution," and pushed Democrats to resist a deal that doesn't address DACA with the hashtag #NoDACANoDeal.
The polling results come as critics of the shutdown held protests throughout the weekend, and amid efforts by GOP lawmakers and the president to point fingers at Democrats in Congress. On Monday, the White House unveiled a new automated message on its telephone comment line, accusing congressional Democrats of "holding government funding, including funding for our troops and other national security priorities, hostage to an unrelated immigration debate."
The inflammatory message came on the heels of a "provocative new ad" released by the Trump reelection campaign that accused Democrats of being "complicit in every murder committed by illegal immigrants." The ad was strongly condemned by immigrant rights advocates, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who said on CNN, "It is really unbelievable and so sad for our country that we have a president of the United States who says such nonsense and such outrageous statements," and noted an "overwhelming" majority of Americans support keeping protections for Dreamers.
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just three days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Despite efforts by President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers to blame Democrats for the government shutdown--deemed the #TrumpShutdown by critics--polling shows American voters hold Republicans and the president responsible for failing to reach an agreement on Friday to keep the federal government funded.
The Politico/Morning Consult poll (pdf) released Sunday, which showed that more American voters blame Republicans than Democrats, echoed results from a Washington Post/ABC poll published Friday. The Politico poll found that nearly two-thirds of U.S. voters support shutting down the government over disagreements about long-term funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which expired at the end of September.
Meanwhile, although 84 percent (pdf) of voters support Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)--which the Trump administration terminated last year but a federal judge recently reinstated--voters are split over whether the DACA debate warrants a shutdown. Republicans have been criticized for their numerous attempts to use DACA recipients, or Dreamers, as "bargaining chips" to implement tougher immigration enforcement measures.
Ahead of a Senate vote scheduled for around noon on Monday, advocates for Dreamers and CHIP urged lawmakers to pass a "bipartisan solution," and pushed Democrats to resist a deal that doesn't address DACA with the hashtag #NoDACANoDeal.
The polling results come as critics of the shutdown held protests throughout the weekend, and amid efforts by GOP lawmakers and the president to point fingers at Democrats in Congress. On Monday, the White House unveiled a new automated message on its telephone comment line, accusing congressional Democrats of "holding government funding, including funding for our troops and other national security priorities, hostage to an unrelated immigration debate."
The inflammatory message came on the heels of a "provocative new ad" released by the Trump reelection campaign that accused Democrats of being "complicit in every murder committed by illegal immigrants." The ad was strongly condemned by immigrant rights advocates, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who said on CNN, "It is really unbelievable and so sad for our country that we have a president of the United States who says such nonsense and such outrageous statements," and noted an "overwhelming" majority of Americans support keeping protections for Dreamers.
Despite efforts by President Donald Trump and GOP lawmakers to blame Democrats for the government shutdown--deemed the #TrumpShutdown by critics--polling shows American voters hold Republicans and the president responsible for failing to reach an agreement on Friday to keep the federal government funded.
The Politico/Morning Consult poll (pdf) released Sunday, which showed that more American voters blame Republicans than Democrats, echoed results from a Washington Post/ABC poll published Friday. The Politico poll found that nearly two-thirds of U.S. voters support shutting down the government over disagreements about long-term funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), which expired at the end of September.
Meanwhile, although 84 percent (pdf) of voters support Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)--which the Trump administration terminated last year but a federal judge recently reinstated--voters are split over whether the DACA debate warrants a shutdown. Republicans have been criticized for their numerous attempts to use DACA recipients, or Dreamers, as "bargaining chips" to implement tougher immigration enforcement measures.
Ahead of a Senate vote scheduled for around noon on Monday, advocates for Dreamers and CHIP urged lawmakers to pass a "bipartisan solution," and pushed Democrats to resist a deal that doesn't address DACA with the hashtag #NoDACANoDeal.
The polling results come as critics of the shutdown held protests throughout the weekend, and amid efforts by GOP lawmakers and the president to point fingers at Democrats in Congress. On Monday, the White House unveiled a new automated message on its telephone comment line, accusing congressional Democrats of "holding government funding, including funding for our troops and other national security priorities, hostage to an unrelated immigration debate."
The inflammatory message came on the heels of a "provocative new ad" released by the Trump reelection campaign that accused Democrats of being "complicit in every murder committed by illegal immigrants." The ad was strongly condemned by immigrant rights advocates, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who said on CNN, "It is really unbelievable and so sad for our country that we have a president of the United States who says such nonsense and such outrageous statements," and noted an "overwhelming" majority of Americans support keeping protections for Dreamers.