News and Commentary

POLL: Majority Concerned That Trump Opponents ‘Will Resort To Violence’

   DailyWire.com
Police forces are charging demonstrators during the inter-union demonstration on May 1 in Paris, which also includes yellow vests, in Paris, France, on May 1, 2019.
Photo by Emeric Fohlen/NurPhoto via Getty Images

On Thursday, Rasmussen Reports released a survey showing that a majority of “likely voters” believe that removing the president from office via impeachment would “lead to violence.” Perhaps more shocking, a larger majority believe that anti-Trump individuals will “resort to violence.”

The survey was conducted between November 18-19 on 1,000 “likely voters.”

Specifically, the survey asked respondents: “How concerned are you that President Trump’s impeachment and removal from office will lead to violence?”

Rasmussen reports that 53% of respondents indicated that they are concerned. 24% are “very concerned.”

The survey also asked: “How concerned are you that those opposed to President Trump’s policies will resort to violence?”

59% of respondents indicated that they are concerned. 34% are “very concerned.”

Democrats don’t appear nearly as worried about opposition violence.

“While 40% of Democrats are very concerned that those opposed to Trump’s policies will resort to violence, just 18% feel that way about his supporters if the president is removed from office,” according to Rasmussen.

When asked about the likelihood of a new “civil war” occurring within “the next five years,” 31% of respondents said that such a scenario is likely. 9% said it was “very likely.”

Awareness of political aggression and politically-motivated violence seems to have moved to the forefront of America’s collective consciousness.

According to a Pew Research survey conducted in April and May, 85% of respondents believe that the “nature of political debate … has become more negative in recent years.”

An October 2018 survey conducted by McLaughlin & Associates on “800 full-time undergraduates” found that a significant number of students believe that violence is justified as a preventative measure against “hate speech.”

According to The Wall Street Journal, the survey asked students if they agreed or disagreed with the following statement: “If someone is using hate speech or making racially charged comments, physical violence can be justified to prevent this person from espousing their hateful views.”

33% said that they “agree” with the statement.

In early-October, Nathan Kalmoe, assistant professor of political communication at Louisiana State University, tweeted out some troubling information from a YouGov survey:

In a 2019 YouGov survey w/ @LilyMasonPhD, 70% of Reps & 56% of Dems saw the other party as “a serious threat to the United States & its people.”

55% of Reps & 44% of Dems said the other party is “not just worse for politics—they are downright evil.” 34% of Reps & 27% of Dems said the other party “lack the traits to be considered fully human—they behave like animals.”

A small but disturbing percentage of respondents indicated favorability toward “political violence,” according to Kalmoe.

The survey asked: “How much do you feel it is justified for [own party] to use violence in advancing their political goals these days?”

While a strong 87.3% of respondents said “not at all,” 5.2% said “a moderate amount,” 4.7% said “a little,” 1.5% said “a great deal,” and 1.3% said “a lot.”

That means that out of all respondents, approximately 12.7% were at least a little bit comfortable with the idea of using violence as a tool of political power.

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The Daily Wire   >  Read   >  POLL: Majority Concerned That Trump Opponents ‘Will Resort To Violence’