National poll shows support for top Biden agenda items, opposition to GOP investigations

A national poll released by Navigator, a progressive polling company, shows a majority of voters aligned with President Joe Biden on several key issues in the coming year and opposed to Republican investigations of the president’s family and attempts to cut safety net benefits.

Navigator describes itself as a resource for “developing and distributing winning progressive messages and polling,” and it conducted its poll among 999 registered voters from Nov. 17 to 21; the company did not provide information about its polling methodology.

Sixty-four percent of those surveyed said they support passing a federal law that would protect the right to an abortion. In addition to support from a supermajority of Democrats and a majority of independent voters, the poll also showed 42% of Republicans backing such a law.

Following the conservative-led Supreme Court’s overturning of the affirmation of a constitutional right to abortion in the 1973 ruling in Roe vs. Wade, several Republican-led states have enacted bans on abortion.

Biden criticized the court’s decision the day it was announced, describing it as a “sad day” for the United States. Before the midterm elections, he called on voters to elect a pro-choice Democratic majority to Congress that would pass a bill codifying the right to an abortion, which he planned to sign. Legislation sponsored by 78% of Republicans in the House and 38% of the party in the Senate in 2021 called for a complete abortion ban without exceptions.

In Navigator’s polling, a majority of respondents said there should be a ban on assault weapons; Biden recently called for a ban following mass shootings in Colorado and Virginia.

The poll also showed 60% backing a federal law to protect same-sex marriage. On Monday, the U.S. Senate passed the Respect for Marriage Act. While the bill attracted the support of enough Republicans to overcome a potential filibuster, a majority of Republican Senators voted against it. It is expected to pass in the House of Representatives, and Biden plans to sign it.

After winning a narrow majority in the House in the 2022 elections, Republican leadership announced plans to investigate Hunter Biden based on conspiracy theories. Navigator’s polling found that voters overwhelmingly believe the House should focus on efforts to address inflation, reduce crime, and reform immigration instead. Voters also preferred efforts to address those issues over enacting a national abortion ban, such as that contained in legislation offered by Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC).

Biden has previously supported comprehensive immigration reform, including a bill he proposed addressing the issue on his first day in office, and he has outlined a plan to fund crime prevention and reform policing. The Inflation Reduction Act, which Biden signed in August, focused on reducing costs for items such as prescription drugs, home heating, and automobiles. Biden has said addressing inflation is the top priority of his administration.

Voters said their biggest area of concern about the incoming Republican majority’s agenda is the party’s interest in cutting Social Security and Medicare, as well as Republican support for enacting nationwide abortion bans.

Biden has repeatedly criticized Republicans for plans to cut safety net programs and has asserted his administration’s support for Social Security and Medicare.

In a Nov. 1 speech, Biden said: “You’ve been paying into Social Security your whole life. You earned it. Now these guys want to take it away. Who in the hell do they think they are?”

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.