Remember when then-candidate Donald Trump made combating illegal immigration and strengthening the border the central piece of his presidential campaign, and then won?
Democrats apparently haven’t gleaned very many lessons from that, and have made championing the plight of illegal immigrants a key part of their strategy going into the 2018 midterms. Their most recognizable slogan is “Abolish ICE,” and Republicans recently forced Democrats to “own it.” Yesterday House lawmakers voted on a bill that affirms support for ICE, and explicitly condemns calls to abolish the agency. (RELATED: Republican Leadership Got Dems To Refuse To Support ICE). The majority of House Democrats–133–voted “present,” with the remainder split. Eighteen Democrats voted in favor the bill and 35 voted against it. All Republicans except one (libertarian-leaning Justin Amash) voted for the motion.
While the bill didn’t actually do anything when it comes to funding or enforcement, it did give us a head-count on how different Congressmen stand on ICE. That’s good to know for Republicans, given that the American public is on their side when it comes to supporting ICE. Only about 25% of the electorate supports abolishing ICE, and even Democrat voters are close to split on the issue. (RELATED: Poll Shows Most Oppose Abolishing ICE).
But, does any of this matter? Is immigration really the biggest issue on voters minds going into the midterms?
A new Gallup poll says yes.
According to the Daily Caller, “Immigration has surged to the top of the list of when Americans are asked what issue is the most pressing problem facing the country, according to Gallup’s latest poll. In fact, the share of people who say immigration is the most important issue is higher now that at any time in the past 17 years that Gallup has been asking the question. The Gallup poll, released Wednesday, found that 22 percent of Americans said in July that immigration tops their list of concerns, edging out the 19 percent who said ‘dissatisfaction with the government.’ That is an eight-point bump since June, when just 14 percent put immigration at the top of the list.”
And just wait till you see how important the immigration issue is to voters, as compared to two decades ago:
As Gallup themselves note, “The midterm congressional elections are now less than four months away, and the growing prevalence of immigration in Republicans’ perceptions of the most important problem facing the nation could make it a fruitful theme for GOP candidates working to retain their party’s House and Senate advantages.”
No kidding.
Trump made immigration an issue again, and it got him elected. When it comes to the midterms, Democrats taking the opposing position on the issue will soon learn that doing so will yield them the opposite result.
