Unfailingly controversial, President Donald Trump has struggled to get Americans united behind his agenda. But despite the best efforts of the mainstream media, they have not managed to turn voters against one of his most controversial proposals: The Middle Eastern travel ban that was recently given the temporary green light by the Supreme Court. The ban, which targets six terrorist havens including Iran, Yemen, Syria, Sudan, Libya, and Somalia, is supported by 60% of registered voters according to a new Politico/Morning Consult poll. Only 28% of registered voters oppose the ban.
Like most of politics these days, the favorable/unfavorable numbers break along party lines. Unlike most of politics, however, there is quite a bit more support for the ban among Democrats than for most of Trump’s agenda. 84% of Republicans support the travel restrictions while only 9% oppose. On the Democrat side, 41% support and 46% oppose. Among independents, 56% support the ban and 30% are against it.
The poll carefully avoided mentioning the president himself, which may have contributed to the positive numbers. Instead, voters were asked whether or not they support the State Department’s “new guidelines which say visa applicants from six predominately Muslim countries must prove a close family relationship with a U.S. resident in order to enter the country.”
The travel ban, as approved by the high court, is somewhat less stringent than the one blocked by federal judges earlier in the year – and that version itself was less comprehensive than the original executive order approved by the White House. In the version that went into effect last Thursday night, refugees and travelers without a previous visa approval will be denied entry into the U.S. unless they can prove an existing business or family relationship to an American entity or citizen. Even these restrictions were met with dissent by conservative Justices, who argued that it gave critics far too much leeway to once again sue the administration and block certain aspects of the order. Nonetheless, this is what the Trump administration has to work with – at least until October, when the Supreme Court will take up the case in full.
By that time, of course, the ban’s timed restrictions – set at 120 days for refugees and 90 days for all travelers from the barred countries – will already have been lifted. Still, the court’s ruling will be important, because it’s clear we need a major legal reminder about the powers of the presidency. If the ruling is favorable, it may also embolden the president to create and enforce a new set of restrictions in the war against terrorism. Moreover, it will strengthen U.S. borders and demonstrate to the increasingly-unhinged left that we do not, as a matter of law, have to let anyone into our country simply because they want to come here.
Comments are closed.