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Poll says Democrats way out of touch with mainstream America
Catherine Mortensen
Catherine Mortensen

A newly released Quinnipiac poll shows Democrats aren’t content to socially distance at six feet, they are keeping a football field length between themselves and their fellow Americans, at least when it comes to their political agenda.

While partisanship remains as strong as it was during the Trump era, Independents are weighing in heavily against Biden. By nearly 2-1, independents disapprove of President Joe Biden, 60%-32%.

The poll shows that that on nearly every issue, from Biden’s handling of the economy to his handling of the war in Afghanistan, Democrats have self-isolated not only from Republicans, but from Independents, as well. The poll numbers show that Independents are today more closely aligned with Republicans than Democrats on nearly every key policy issue.

Looking at 13 of the policy questions, Independent voters were on average 40 points away from Democrats, while being on average only 20 points away from Republicans.

“Joe Biden’s socialist agenda is alienating Independents and turning the Democrat party into a party of out-of-touch radicals,” said Richard Manning, president of Americans for Limited Government.

On his handling of coronavirus, 84 percent of Republicans and 56 percent of Independents disapprove of what he’s done, while only 10 percent of Democrats disapprove.

The issue that Independents diverge most from Democrats is on Biden’s handling of the economy. While only 12 percent of Democrats disapprove of the job the president is doing in this area, 61 percent of Independent disapprove.

On the question of how Biden is handling the job of president overall, Independents were 48 points away from Democrats, with 80 percent of Democrats approving of the job Biden is doing and only 32 percent of Independents approving.

The poll shows that Independents are most closely aligned with Republicans when asked “how satisfied are you with the way things are going in the nation today?” Ninety-five percent of Republicans answered somewhat or very dissatisfied compared with 79 percent of Independents. Meanwhile, only 40 percent of Democrats reported being either somewhat or very dissatisfied.

On the question of how the economy is doing, again Independents were much closer to Republicans than Democrats. Eighty-nine percent of Republicans believe the economy is either doing poorly or not so good, compared with 72 percent of Independents. Only 44 percent of Democrats agreed.

“The importance of this schism cannot be overstated,” Manning said. “What we are witnessing is the unraveling of the Biden coalition that got him into office in 2020. Setting aside the question of whether or not Biden was even legitimately elected, we know that his appeal to Independent voters made all the difference for him”

In 2020, Biden did 10 points better than Hillary Clinton among Independents.

The left-leaning Brookings Institute noted several months ago that Independent voters will be the key to Biden’s reelection.

“If the Democratic Party is regarded as going beyond what the center of the electorate expects and want, Democrats’ gains among suburban voters and moderate Republicans could evaporate,” wrote William Galston of Brookings. “And if Democrats continue to misread the sentiments of Hispanics, who now constitute the country’s largest non-white group, their shift toward Republicans could continue. There is evidence that among Hispanics as well as whites, a distinctive working-class consciousness is more powerful than ethnic identity.”

The Quinnipiac polls show the Democrat party has lurched far to the left, leaving Independent voters behind. As for Hispanic voters, the poll also signals trouble for the Democrats. Overall, 67 percent of Americans disapprove of Biden’s handling of immigration issues, while 69 percent of Hispanics do.

“That may be the most significant number in this poll,” Manning explained. “Biden’s open border policies are wildly unpopular with Hispanics, and if he continues down this path, he may lose their support in 2024.”

Manning said further evidence of how alienated Biden is from middle-of-the-road, centrist voters can be seen in the growing wave of anti-Biden demonstrations at football stadiums across the country.

“The recent New York Jets game in Queens, New York is a perfect example,” Manning explained. “It’s not exactly a Republican stronghold. These are not Trump voters. Yet there they were, 75,000 of them are packed in a stadium, defying Biden’s COVID edicts and chanting f--- Joe Biden. This is an overwhelming release of pent-up energy. These people are tired of what is happening in the country.

“As the poll makes clear, this is not a partisan issue. These people are declaring they are free Americans,” Manning concluded.


Catherine Mortensen is vice president of Communications at Americans for Limited Government.