Washington (AP) – AS Armed National Guard Patrol the country’s capital as part of an unprecedented federal takeover of Washington’s police department Donald Trumpaccording to the latest AP-NORC poll.
Americans who are not satisfied with the Republican president’s handling of issues like immigration and the economy are more positive about his harsh criminal approach. Associated Press-NORC Civil Service Research Center.
In fact, the majority of Americans, 81%, view crime as a “major problem” in big cities. Trump is concerned that he was seized for deploying the National Guard in the District of Columbia. They threatened to expand the model. To cities all over the country. And his overall approval rate rose slightly, from 40% in July to 45%.
However, polls show that there is little public support for the federal takeover of local police departments, suggesting that opinions could change over the coming weeks or months, depending on how Trump actively pursues his threat.
For now, as statistics show, many Republicans in particular feel that they need to take extreme action. Violent crimes are down across Washington and across the country Following the spikes of the coronavirus pandemic era.
“I care if someone did something,” said Charles Arnold, 87, a lifelong Republican living in San Diego.
Arnold, a retired electronics engineer and veteran who served in the Navy, said it was harsh to see the National Guard being used by domestic law enforcement in the US soil, but it appears to be necessary to take action.
“That’s not the military’s purpose. They shouldn’t be there. They don’t have to be there. The police should be allowed to be police,” he said. “I hate the idea that I need to do that.”
Handling crime is a strength for Trump.
About half of American adults, 53%, say they approve Trump’s crime handling, polls find.
It is the economy, immigration, and The conflict between Russia and Ukraine – In line with his overall approval rating.
Trump’s approach to crime is equally popular among white and Hispanic adults, with about half of each group saying he approves how the issue is handled. However, black adults are significantly less likely to say they are riding Trump’s criminal approach, with only 27% in favor.
Trump has also gained much stronger support from independents on crime than in other issues. About half of the independents have approved his crime handling, compared to about three out of ten who approved handling of the economy, immigration, and the Russia-Ukraine war.
Most people think that crime is a “big problem” for big cities
There is a widespread agreement among Americans that crime is a major issue even in big cities. Number of incidents that have declined.
That belief is particularly prominent among Republicans, with almost all of them viewing crime as a major problem in big cities. Approximately seven agree with 10 independents and Democrats.
Americans living in urban areas are also more likely to say that crime is a “big problem” in their community.
They include Teana Parker, 30, a liberal Democrat living in the suburbs of Seattle. Parker is disappointed by what Trump is doing in Washington, D.C. and what he is doing with his entire presidency, but he still calls crime a “big problem.”
“I feel in Seattle, especially as a woman, that I am not safe at least not myself,” he told me that he was sexually assaulted on a train a few years ago. there was A fatal shooting There have been several times when she said she was being chased while walking down the street at a strip mall near where she lived last year.
She believes that crime needs to be addressed, but she thinks Trump’s approach is misguided and dangerous.
“What he’s doing is a waste of resources and he’s not actually attacking real problems. It’s creating a real disparity,” she said. “I think it’s a serious lack of respect and trust in his citizens.”
That sentiment is shared by information technology director Mark Huckle, 49, who lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma, who was a lifelong conservative Republican until 2016, when he left the party after being disappointed in Trump. He is currently a registered independent.
“I think crime is an issue that needs to be dealt with at all times,” he said. “I’m always a professional loyalty and ordering, so to speak,” he said, but there is a point in which the end does not justify the means.
“My raw feelings are what I find frightening of by it,” he said. “We are not assuming that we will allow aggressive troops to function at the US border.”
I think the federal government should support the police rather than take over.
Still, there are limits to what the public accepts. Polls show that 55% of US adults believe that federal government controls local police stations as Trump did effectively in Washington is “completely” or “somewhat” unacceptable.
Republicans overwhelmingly support the federal government using the military and national security to support local police, but they also have a strong voice over the federal government, which takes control of local police stations.
About half of Republicans feel this is acceptable, but about a third say it isn’t. The Democrats are highly opposed to both.
For Republican David Gallet, 62, a maintenance technician living in the countryside of Narbon, Pennsylvania, what Trump is doing is spot-off.
“Bring it,” he said. “Please protect us.”
___Collvin reported from New York.
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The AP-NORC poll of 1,182 adults was conducted from August 21-25 using samples drawn from Norc’s probability-based Amerispeak panel designed to represent the US population. The margin for sampling errors across adults is either positive or negative 3.8 percentage points.
