Billy Ferguson/Fourth Estate
Americans trust Mueller more than Trump according to new Schar School poll
BY DANA NICKEL NEWS EDITOR
A poll conducted by Mason’s Schar School and The Washington Post concluded that more Americans are confident in the facts presented by special counsel Robert Mueller than President Trump’s accounts.
According to the poll, 51 percent of Americans approve the way special counsel Mueller is handling the investigation, while only 34 percent disapprove.
Mueller is currently leading an investigation into whether or not Trump’s presidential campaign colluded with Russia during the 2016 election, as well as election interference from the Russian government.
Additionally, 52 percent of Americans disapprove Trump’s responses to Mueller’s investigation.
Since the investigation began in May 2017, Trump has been repeatedly vocal in his protests of the investigation. Trump has repeatedly called the case a “witch hunt,” and in his 2019 State of the Union address, he stated that “ridiculous partisan” investigations were holding back progress for the U.S.
One of the poll’s questions surrounded whether or not Americans believe that Mueller’s investigation has proven that Russia attempted to interfere with the 2016 election. Americans’ responses have been split on this question, with 43 percent believing that Mueller has proven Russia has interfered, as well as 43 percent believing collusion has not been proven.
A majority of Americans surveyed also support Congress impeaching Trump if the investigation concludes that Trump authorized his campaign to collude with Russian agents, with 61 percent of Americans supporting impeachment if Trump did authorize collusion.
Many people in Trump’s base of supporters have expressed their belief that Mueller is more interested in hurting Trump politically instead of looking for the truth.
However, according to the poll, 57 percent of Americans believe that Mueller is mainly interested in finding out the truth.
Along with general questions about Mueller’s investigation, respondents were asked to identify their political leanings at the end of the survey. The majority of respondents, 39 percent, answered that they identify as independents, with 32 percent identifying as Democrats and 26 percent identifying as Republicans.
According to an article published by Politico, the responses seem to reflect the partisan divide in Congress.
While the House committee concluded its investigation into the election last year under Republican control, Democrats have promised to reopen the probe into the election since they have taken the House after the midterm elections in November 2018.
Despite the growing partisan divide in and outside of Washington D.C., respondents in the poll were unified in their desire to view the results of Mueller’s investigation. Eighty-one percent of Americans surveyed stated they believed Mueller’s full report should be released to the public once the investigation is concluded.
