Poll Shows Sharp Partisan Divide In Confidence In Trump's Deal-Making Skills
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A new CBS News poll found that most want President Donald Trump and Congress to move on from health care, and also found a sharp partisan divide on confidence in his ability to make deals.
The poll found that 83 percent of Democrats and 55 percent of independents are not confident in Trump's ability to make deals with Congress – but 79 percent of Republicans are confident.
The poll further found that more 60 percent of Americans would like to see Trump Congress and Congress move away from health care, though 54 percent of Republicans would like to see another attempt at a health care bill.
A total of 53 percent of poll respondents found that they are optimistic about the next four years with Trump in office – down slightly from when he took office. The numbers are boosted mostly by Republicans, while independents are split, the poll said.
When it comes to tax reform, 86 percent of Republicans in the poll have overwhelming confidence in Trump's ability to make the right decisions about it – compared with 42 percent of independents and only 18 percent of Democrats.
A total of 56 percent of Americans across income levels think the current income tax system is not fair to people like them, the poll said.
Both parties in Congress got largely positive marks from their own rank-and-file, but Republicans are more mixed about Congressional Republicans than Democrats are about Congressional Democrats the poll said.
Congressional Republicans have an approval rating of 29 percent – lower than Trump – but presidents usually have a higher approval rating than Congress, according to the poll. Trump's overall job approval rating is 40 percent, while 52 percent disapprove.
Most poll respondents across the board – 56 percent – said they would like to see Trump reach out to moderates in Congress in his efforts to get things done. Eleven percent said he should get more support from conservatives and Republicans, 18 percent said he should get more support from liberals and Democrats, and 7 percent said the president should just stick to what he wants.
A total of 58 percent of poll respondents reported they were glad the Republican health care bill failed, though 59 percent of Republicans were frustrated about it. Thirty-two percent overall approved of Trump's handling of health care while 59 percent disapproved – but only 67 percent of Republicans responded approvingly.
Americans are also divided on what is a greater concern – 42 percent said the issue of possible improper communications with Russia by the Trump campaign, while 46 percent said possible leaks from the intelligence community. The divide was sharply partisan.
A total of 56 percent of Americans said it is somewhat likely that Trump associates had improper contact with the Russian government, including 85 percent of Democrats.
The poll was taken among a random sample of 1,088 adults between Saturday, March 25, and Tuesday, March 28. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.
