76% OF U.S. VOTERS ARE CONCERNED OVER CLIMATE CHANGE, OPPOSITION TO WALL GROWS, BUT HEALTHCARE IS #1 CONCERN

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East County News Service

April 7, 2017 (Washington D.C.) – A new national poll by Quinnipiac University has found that over three-fourths of American voters surveyed are concerned about climate change, more than two-thirds oppose building a wall on the Mexican border, and when asked to name the biggest problem facing America, voters’ number one answer was healthcare.

President Donald Trump has slashed funding for climate change research, removed climate change data off government websites and said he will pull the U.S. out of the Paris climate accord.  But in so doing, he’s going against the will of the vast majority of voters, if the Quinnipiac poll is accurate.

A whopping 76% of American voters polled said they are concerned about climate change and believe that it is real—and 65% believe it’s caused by human activity.

Only 19% think climate change is a hoax. Moreover, 72% think cutting funding for scientific research on the environment and climate change and only 18% believe the U.S. is doing enough to combat climate change, according to a national poll conducted by Quinnipiac University released this week.

Over half--56%-- say use of coal should be discouraged due to environmental concerns, though 36% said it should be encouraged due to jobs and economic benefits.

Nearly all--92%-- agree on one thing: its’ important for the U.S. to be energy independent and produce all of its own energy.

America’s worst problem

Voters were also asked, in an open-ended question allowing for any answer, to name the most important problem facing the nation.

The number one answer was healthcare, chosen by 12 percent, followed by the Trump administration and the economy, with 11 percent each.  Other problems named by significant numbers of people included immigration (7%), political gridlock (6%), foreign affairs including concerns about Russia (5%), terrorism (5%), the environment (4%), and the budget (2%), our divided nation (2%), lack of ethics (2%), and racism (2%).   Issues that 1% of those polled listed as the most important problem include class inequality, crime, corruption, war, taxes, and poverty/homelessness.

The Wall

64% of American voters oppose building a wall on the border with Mexico, the highest level of opposition measured so far and up from 60 percent opposition in a February 23 Quinnipiac University poll.

All parties, races, genders, ages, racial and education groups oppose the wall, except 72% of Republicans support it and 50% of white voters with no college degree want the wall. 

Gorsuch confirmation

Although half said they support confirmation of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, over two-thirds (67%) oppose the Senate bypassing a filibuster to confirm him.

Russian concerns

56% of American voters disapprove of President Donald Trump’s handling of U.S. policy toward Russia, the poll found—and 68% want an independent commission to investigate potential links between Trump campaign advisors and the Russian government.

But voters are evenly divided 44 – 44 percent on whether they believe individuals in the Trump campaign coordinated with the Russian government to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. Still, 64 percent of American voters are “very concerned” or “somewhat concerned” about President Trump’s relationship with Russia.

The survey was done between March 30 – April 3, 2017. It included 1,171 voters nationwide with a margin of error of +/- 2.9 percentage points. Live interviewers called landlines and cell phones.

The Quinnipiac University Poll, directed by Douglas Schwartz, Ph.D., conducts public opinion surveys in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Florida, Ohio, Virginia, Iowa, Colorado and the nation as a public service and for research.

Visit http://poll.qu.edu or www.facebook.com/quinnipiacpoll.


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