WASHINGTON — Republicans may be willing to stick with President Trump through almost anything, but his recent push to seize control of Greenland has turned off many in his own party, according to a new AP-NORC poll.
The survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research finds that about 7 in 10 U.S. adults disapprove of how Trump is handling the issue of Greenland, a semiautonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark. That’s higher than the share who dislike how he’s handling foreign policy generally, suggesting that Trump’s Greenland approach has created a weak spot for the administration. About 24% of American adults approve of Trump’s Greenland approach.
Even Republicans aren’t thrilled. About half disapprove of his attempt to turn the icebound landmass into American territory, something that Trump has insisted is critical for national security in the Arctic, while about half approve.
The poll was conducted Feb. 5-8, which is after Trump had made the decision to scrap tariffs designed to pressure European countries into supporting U.S. control of Greenland, but after his weekslong push for American intervention over the island.
About half of Republicans disapprove of Trump on Greenland
Trump’s base is normally unwavering behind him, so Greenland stands out as an exception.
The marks represent Trump’s lowest ratings among Republicans on a list of key issues in the poll, including the economy and immigration — where about 8 in 10 approve — and foreign policy generally. About 7 in 10 Republicans approve of his overall foreign policy approach.
Trump has argued that the U.S. needs Greenland to counter threats from Russia and China in the Arctic region, despite America already having a military presence there.
Other recent polls, including a Pew Research Center survey conducted in January, found that Republicans were largely divided on whether the U.S. should take over Greenland, while Americans overall were opposed.
Ayman Amir, a 46-year-old Trump supporter from Houston, Texas, said he agrees that Greenland holds strategic importance for the United States’ military. But that doesn’t mean he thinks Trump should claim it.
“We can’t take it by force. We don’t have a right to do that,” Amir said. “You can’t blame Russia for what they do in Ukraine and then do the same thing. You can’t do this.”
Trump’s overall foreign policy approval remains steady
The president dropped his threats to seize the territory by force late last month after saying a framework for a deal over access to Greenland was reached with help from NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte.
The clash represents just one of the moves Trump has made to strain relationships with key allies over the last year. Western leaders are focusing on trans-Atlantic tensions this week at the Munich Security Conference.
On Greenland, Trump has few vocal supporters at home or abroad.
Even as Trump made significant moves to obtain control of Greenland, his overall approval on the issue of foreign policy has remained steady. About 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve of Trump’s approach to foreign policy, a measure that’s been unchanged in recent months.
Young Republicans especially disapprove of Greenland approach
Younger Republicans are especially likely to disapprove of how Trump is handling the situation.
About 6 in 10 Republicans under 45 say they disapprove of his leadership on Greenland, compared to about 4 in 10 older Republicans.
That 4 in 10 who approve of Trump’s Greenland actions is much lower than young Republicans’ approval on issues of foreign policy, the economy, or immigration.
Independent voter Aaron Gunnoe, 29, an engineer from Marion, Ohio, was baffled by Trump’s aggressive posture on the NATO ally.
“It’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,” he said. “It’s owned by somebody else. That should be the end of it.”
Peoples and Sanders write for the Associated Press. The AP-NORC poll of 1,156 adults was conducted Feb. 5-8 using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.9 percentage points. The margin of sampling error for Republicans overall is plus or minus 6.1 percentage points.
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