Most voters in a new survey blame either President Trump or Republicans in Congress for the federal shutdown, which has now stretched into its second month.
In an NBC News poll, conducted in late October, 52 percent of voters say Trump and/or the Republican Party is responsible for the federal shutdown, including 25 percent who blame congressional Republicans, 24 percent who blame Trump, and 3 percent who say they blame both, even after they were asked to select between the two.
Another 42 percent of respondents blame Democrats in Congress for the shutdown.
Core party constituencies were most likely to blame the other party for the shutdown, suggesting each party’s base is supportive of their respective party’s approach to the shutdown.
“Each party could look at this data and say, ‘Let’s not blink,’” GOP pollster Bill McInturff of Public Opinion Strategies told NBC News. McInturff conducted the survey with Democratic pollster Jeff Horwitt of Hart Research Associates.
“Health care, a central focus of the government shutdown debate, is an area where Democrats continue to hold the upper hand,” Horwitt told the news outlet.
The survey was conducted heading into the fifth week of the shutdown, as there continues to be no meaningful progress toward a deal to reopen the government.
Democrats have insisted they would not support a GOP proposal to reopen the government without first extending the enhanced Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies, which are set to expire at the end of the year, raising health care premiums for millions of Americans.
Republicans, meanwhile, say they won’t negotiate health subsidies until Democrats vote to reopen the government.
With Trump home from his trip last week to Asia, some Democrats are renewing their push for a meeting with the president. Some have said if they just sit down with the president, they’re confident they could come to a deal quickly.
The survey included 1,000 registered voters and was conducted Oct. 24-28. The margin of error is 3.1 percentage points.
