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Poll: Democrat Views on Climate, Health Care More Mainstream

A majority of Americans say the Democratic Party's views on climate change, health care, immigration and abortion are more mainstream than the Republican Party's views, according to a new poll.

(CN) – A majority of Americans say the Democratic Party's views on climate change, health care, immigration and abortion are more mainstream than the Republican Party's views, according to a new poll.

Democratic members of Congress, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., center, pose for a photo before President Donald Trump delivers his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2019. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

The NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey found that more than half of all Americans, 56 percent, said they believed the Democrats' views on climate change are more in the mainstream. Comparatively, only 29 percent said the Republican Party's climate change views are more mainstream, while 65 percent said the GOP's views are out of the mainstream.

The results of the poll come a month after the introduction of the Democrats' Green New Deal to Congress by Rep. Alexandria. Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. and Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. The resolution intends to set up a "10-year national mobilization" to lessen the impact of human-caused pollution, including infrastructure improvements, upgrading buildings for energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector.

In a tweet last month, President Donald Trump said he opposes the resolution.

"I think it is very important for the Democrats to press forward with their Green New Deal. It would be great for the so-called 'Carbon Footprint' to permanently eliminate all Planes, Cars, Cows, Oil, Gas & the Military – even if no other country would do the same. Brilliant!" Trump tweeted.

On the topic of health care, Democrats are also seen as being more in the mainstream. Of those surveyed, 56 percent said the Democratic Party's stance on health care was more mainstream. Only 41 percent said the same about the GOP’s health care stance.

Republicans, who have repeatedly sought to repeal the Affordable Care Act, are in favor of private-sector approaches to health care. Democrats, meanwhile, tend to favor an expansion of government health care programs Medicare and Medicaid.

In last November's mid-term elections, Democrats picked up a record number of seats in the House of Representatives after campaigning hard on health care and taking advantage of Republicans who supported weakening protections for people with pre-existing illnesses.

Following concerns about the future of legal abortion after the confirmation of two Supreme Court justices under the Trump administration, Democratic views on abortion are also viewed as being more mainstream. Only 38 percent of those polled say Republican views on the controversial topic are in the mainstream, compared to 51 percent who say Democrats are more mainstream.

Regarding immigration, more Americans said Democrats are in the mainstream at 52 percent to 45 percent saying the same about Republicans.

Since being in office, President Trump has initiated a number of policy changes meant to curb legal and illegal immigration. He presided over the longest government shutdown in U.S. history stemming from his refusal to sign a budget that did not include more than $5 billion in funding for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. The final budget deal did not include the money Trump asked for.

The president has since declared a national emergency at the border in an effort to obtain funding for a wall through the military budget, diverting $3.6 billion for its construction and an additional $3.1 billion from other sources.

Fiscal policy is the only topic in which both parties were viewed equally as being in the mainstream. Americans say both Republicans and Democrats, at 47 percent each, have fiscal policies that are in the mainstream.

The poll surveyed 900 adults Feb. 24-27 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.27 percentage points.

Categories / Politics

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