Third Of Republican Voters Now Supports Donald Trump Impeachment, New Poll Suggests
The Democratic-controlled House of Representatives launched on Tuesday a formal impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump.
As previously reported by The Inquisitr, Trump is being accused of using the power of his office to pressure a foreign government into investigating a political opponent. According to a whistleblower who filed a formal complaint, Trump pressured Ukraine’s newly-elected President Volodymyr Zelensky to launch an investigation into former Vice President Joe Biden’s son Hunter.
The transcript of Trump’s conversation with Zelensky released earlier this week suggests that Trump was indeed pressuring the Ukrainian government to investigate Hunter Biden’s allegedly inappropriate business dealings in the country. The president and his allies have vehemently denied the allegations, blasting the Democratic Party for launching what they claim is yet another partisan witch hunt.
According to Trump and his Republican allies, there was no quid pro quo, because Trump did not explicitly say that he will withdraw military aid to Ukraine unless the country’s officials investigate the Bidens.
Nevertheless, a formal impeachment inquiry has been launched. If House investigations find Trump guilty of impeachable offenses, and if the House votes to impeach the president, the GOP-controlled Senate will have to make the final decision, and determine whether to convict and remove the president or not.
According to Mike Murphy, a Republican operative who worked for Jeb Bush and John McCain, there isn’t exactly a consensus among Senate Republicans. At least 30 GOP lawmakers, according to Murphy, would vote against Trump if the vote was held in secret.
Nearly all Senate Republicans, however, back Trump because they seemingly fear electoral backlash.
But would there be backlash? Polls conducted prior to the Ukraine scandal suggest that there would. For instance, according to Gallup — which has been tracking Trump’s approval rating since he took office — the president is exceptionally popular among Republicans, with his support seldom dropping below 80 percentage points.
However, a new poll by YouGov suggests that the tide is shifting, even among Republicans.
Respondents were asked the following question.
“If President Donald Trump suspended military aid to Ukraine in order to incentivize the country’s officials to investigate his political rival, Joe Biden, and his son, would you support or oppose impeachment?”
Forty-four percent said that they would “strongly” support impeachment, and 11 percent said that they would “somewhat” support it. Twenty percent would “strongly” oppose it, and 6 percent would “somewhat” oppose it.
Seventy-six percent of Democrats would support impeachment, with 66 percent “strongly” supporting it, and 10 percent somewhat supporting it.
.@SenSchumer: "If the House at the end of its inquiry sees fit to accuse the president of impeachable offenses, we in the Senate will act as jury." pic.twitter.com/HIAlriYkIj
— CSPAN (@cspan) September 26, 2019
When it comes to Republicans, many appear to have turned against the president. Nearly a third of Republican voters now support impeachment, according to the poll.
Thirty-two percent of Republicans in total would support impeachment, with 22 percent “strongly” supporting such a maneuver, and 10 percent somewhat supporting it. Only 41 percent of Republicans strongly oppose impeachment, and 8 percent somewhat oppose it.
