On August 11, President Donald Trump deployed around 800 National Guard troops to the streets of Washington, D.C., and took over the district’s police force. Since then, six additional governors have promised to send additional National Guard troops from their states to assist with Trump’s efforts.
In a new survey, Data for Progress finds that a majority of voters (51%) oppose the Trump administration taking over the Washington, D.C., police force and deploying the National Guard in the city.
A majority of voters agree that “Trump is being authoritarian” (57%) and “Trump is just doing this to distract from other issues” (51%) as it relates to the situation in D.C. At the same time, more than half of voters (51%) also agree that “Trump is doing what's necessary to crack down on crime,” though voters are closely divided, with 46% disagreeing with that statement.
Only 11% of voters think that Trump’s National Guard deployment will be limited to D.C. A majority think that Trump will deploy the National Guard to “many” (39%) or “a few” (35%) additional cities.
Trump has publicly suggested sending the National Guard to other U.S. cities, including New York City, Chicago, Baltimore, and Oakland.
When asked if they would support or oppose Trump deploying the National Guard to address crime in their community, voters say they would oppose this effort by a −9-point net margin.
Broadly, these findings indicate that a majority of voters oppose Trump’s National Guard deployment in D.C. and view it as authoritarian. Voters also think Trump will deploy the National Guard to additional cities and would oppose a deployment in their community.
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Cross-posted from Data for Progress.
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