If the Republican Establishment thought it finally had Donald Trump in a vise after his controversial proposal to ban Muslims from entering the country, a new poll suggests the fingers-crossed Trump doomsayers have been stumped again.
Trump’s support among likely Republican primary and caucus voters reached 38 percent in a poll released Thursday by Zogby Analytics, the first poll conducted entirely after his comments on Monday. It’s the highest percentage he has received yet in a poll conducted by Zogby, and 25 points ahead of his nearest competitor, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who had 13 percent.
The results fly in the face of predictions from pundits and the media that Trump had stepped too far over the line of political correctness this time. While the professional political class continues to squirm over his brash and abrasive tone, many Republican voters are thrilled to have someone who finally speaks for them.
Meantime, a new NBC/Wall Street Journal poll out Thursday evening finds 42 percent of Republicans of support Trump’s proposal to ban Muslims from entering the U.S., while 36 percent oppose it. Among Republicans classified as “primary voters,” 38 percent support Trumps idea and 39 percent oppose it.
Among Republicans, only 16 percent find Trump insulting, while 37 percent believe he’s raising important issues despite his language and 40 percent say he’s telling it like it is, according to MSNBC.
The Zogby poll suggests Trump is not just surviving an onslaught of attacks from a party Establishment seeking to throttle his momentum, he is harnessing them to further consolidate his support among voters.
Though the sample size of the Zogby poll was just 271 people, with a 6 percent margin of error, the result is notable considering that pollster John Zogby confidently predicted in October that Trump would soon “fizzle out.”
Following Carson, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio checked in with 12 percent, while Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush followed suit with 8 and 7 percent, respectively.
Two other polls that were conducted partially before Trump’s statement also have him in a strong position.
A South Carolina survey done from Dec. 5-8 showed support for Trump increase from a previous tally of 30 percent to 38 percent.
Nationwide, Trump took 35 percent and outpaced runner-up Cruz by 19 percent in a CBS/NY Times poll conducted from Dec. 4-8.
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