Poll: Majority Of Republicans Want Donald Trump To Remain A Major Political Figure After Leaving Office On January 20
Most Republicans want GOP lawmakers in Congress to stand up to President-elect Joe Biden as Democrats are set to have control of the presidency and both the House and the Senate in the 117th Congress.
Biden is set to be inaugurated as the 46th US President on Wednesday and Republicans want their leaders to stand their ground on issues that conservatives care about according to a survey conducted by Pew Research Center.
The poll found nearly six in 10 Republicans or 59% of those questioned in a Pew Research Center poll urging GOP leaders in Congress to stand up to the incoming president, and only 38% said Republican lawmakers should try to work with the Democratic president-elect.
Has Trump’s post-election conduct been good? Is he blameless for the riot at the Capitol? Is he the election's actual winner? Should he have a major role in politics going forward?
29% of Republicans hold ALL 4 of these views, but 25% hold NONE of them. https://t.co/Fi3rbhAkgx pic.twitter.com/UKPjnJD5Kl
— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) January 16, 2021
64% of Republicans say Trump “rightful” winner
Pew Research said despite Biden assuming the presidency on January 20 and numerous court decisions rejecting moves to overturn the results, most Republicans (64%) believe President Donald Trump “definitely or probably” won the 2020 election, and only 6% said otherwise.
Despite the noise created by the mainstream media, the Democrats and the big tech over his role in the recent Capitol Hill chaos, almost half of Republicans (46%) said he bears “no responsibility” for the Capitol riot and a similar 44% approve of President Trump’s post-election conduct.
“The survey provides new insights into how Republicans and Republican leaners – a broader group than just Trump voters – view the president as he prepares to exit the White House. Democrats continue to be uniformly critical of Trump,” Pew Research said.
The survey conducted Jan. 8-12 among 5,360 US adults, including 4,040 who say they voted in the presidential election, also found a majority of Republicans saying President Trump should continue to be a major political figure in the party even after his term ends.
Pew Research Center said 57% of Republicans also said “President Trump should continue to be a major political figure for many years to come” while 7% of Democrats said he shouldn’t.
“When the responses to four measures on Trump and his future are combined, GOP internal divisions emerge: 29% hold all four positions – that is, they endorse Trump’s post-election conduct, hold him blameless for the riot, believe he is the election’s rightful winner and want him to have a major role in politics going forward,” Pew Research said.
The Republican President is expected to depart the White House and fly to his home in Florida early on January 20, Wednesday, hours ahead of Biden’s inauguration which he already announced earlier that he would skip.
Meanwhile, President Trump ends his presidency with a better approval rating – than what is being portrayed on mainstream media. Pew Research said based on a survey it conducted between January 8-12, the President’s approval rating was at 60% down from 77% in August of last year.
His approval rating among Republicans, however, “remains robust” according to a recent ABC News/Washington Post national poll – conducted January 10-13 – which showed his rating at 79%.
A Quinnipiac University poll conducted on January 9 or few days after the Capitol Hill chaos also found President Trump’s approval rating among GOP voters at 71%.
