Two-thirds of Democrats back the ongoing federal government shutdown, now in its fourth week, while a majority of Republicans oppose it, according to new polling data released by Rasmussen Reports on Tuesday.
The report showed that a narrow majority of 51% of likely voters support the shutdown, which could account for the unusual reluctance of politicians on both sides to end it. However, that majority is driven largely by the overwhelming enthusiasm of Democrats for the shutdown.
A staggering 43% of Democrats strongly approve of the shutdown, while 23% say they “somewhat approve” of the federal government remaining closed. On the Republican side, 41% strongly disapprove, and 12% somewhat disapprove — with 41% saying they strongly or somewhat approve of the shutdown.
House Republicans have passed a continuing resolution to keep the government open at current funding levels; Senate Democrats, though a minority, have used the filibuster to prevent that bill from happening, saying they want funding for health care spending, including Obamacare insurance subsidies that expire under legislation Democrats themselves had passed.
Democrats are treating the shutdown fight as a way to demonstrate a commitment to opposing Trump. Republicans, who have supported past shutdowns, appear to oppose this one because it is affecting the administration’s ability to govern. But 41% of Republicans support the shutdown — perhaps expecting President Donald Trump to carry out his threat to use the shutdown to cut government departments, or anticipating political benefits if and when the public decide that Democrats are to blame.
That has not happened yet, perhaps reflecting persistent media bias.
Shutdowns initiated by Republicans are typically described in apocalyptic terms, while those started by Democrats are portrayed as brave stands on principle — in this case, for lower health care costs (to counteract the costs introduced by Democrats’ signature health care policy, Obamacare, passed unilaterally in 2010).
The poll surveyed 1,200 likely voters on October 15, 16, and 19, and has a margin of error of plus or minus three percent.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of the recent e-book, “The Zionist Conspiracy (and how to join it),” now available on Audible. He is also the author of the e-book, Neither Free nor Fair: The 2020 U.S. Presidential Election. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
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