Poll: 88 Percent of Republicans Support Trump Telling Democrats to ‘Go Back’ to Broken Countries

Poll: 88 Percent of Republicans Support Trump Telling Democrats to ‘Go Back’ to Broken Countries
US President Donald Trump participates in a Cabinet meeting at the White House on July 16, 2019 in Washington,DC. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)
Zachary Stieber
7/17/2019
Updated:
7/17/2019

A new poll found that nearly nine-in-ten Republican respondents supported President Donald Trump’s tweets telling Democrats who dislike America to return to their countries of birth.

Trump wrote on July 14: “So interesting to see ‘Progressive’ Democrat Congresswomen, who originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe, the worst, most corrupt and inept anywhere in the world (if they even have a functioning government at all), now loudly and viciously telling the people of the United States, the greatest and most powerful Nation on earth, how our government is to be run.”

“Why don’t they go back and help fix the totally broken and crime-infested places from which they came. Then come back and show us how it is done. These places need your help badly, you can’t leave fast enough,” he added. “I’m sure that Nancy Pelosi would be very happy to quickly work out free travel arrangements!”

Pressured to apologize or clarify his statements, Trump has continued attacking the radical Democrats, including Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).

Republican respondents to a YouGov survey (pdf), asked about the tweets, mostly said they supported the sentiment in them.

Of the GOP respondents, 48 percent said the tweets were “great,” another 16 percent said they were “good,” and 24 percent said they were “okay.”

The remaining 13 percent said they were “bad” or “terrible.”

Few Democrats supported the tweets, with 71 percent choosing the “terrible” description and another 16 percent saying they were “bad.” Among independents, 17 percent said they were “great,” 9 percent said they were “good,” 22 percent said they were “okay,” 19 percent said they were “bad,” and 32 percent said they were “terrible.”

Overall, 21 percent of respondents said they were “great” and 37 percent said they were “terrible.”

President Donald Trump talks with journalists during a cabinet meeting with acting Defense Secretary Richard Spencer and others at the White House on July 16, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
President Donald Trump talks with journalists during a cabinet meeting with acting Defense Secretary Richard Spencer and others at the White House on July 16, 2019. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
(L-R) Reps. Rashida Tlaib, (D-Mich.), Ilhan Omar, (D-Minn.), Ayanna Pressley, (D-Mass.), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-(NY), respond to remarks by President Donald Trump during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington on July 15, 2019. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)
(L-R) Reps. Rashida Tlaib, (D-Mich.), Ilhan Omar, (D-Minn.), Ayanna Pressley, (D-Mass.), and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-(NY), respond to remarks by President Donald Trump during a news conference at the Capitol in Washington on July 15, 2019. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP Photo)

Other tweets shown to respondents provoked similar reactions—widespread support among Republicans and a severely negative reaction from Democrats, with Independents in the middle.

Respondents were also asked about the way Trump is handling his job as president, with 29 percent agreeing they approve of everything he’s done.

Another 60 percent said they approve of most of the things he’s done but disapprove of a few things he’s done.

Asked about disapproval, 54 percent said they disapproved of everything Trump has done while another 36 percent said they disapprove of most of the things he’s done but approve a few of the things he’s done.

The poll of 1,000 U.S. adults was conducted over the internet on July 14 and July 15 with a margin of error of 3.3 percent.