In new Morning Consult polling, a full 75 percent of overall respondents indicated that they supported the COVID-19 economic relief package that was slated to pass the House on Wednesday, which is a remarkable level of across-the-board support for a key legislative priority of President Joe Biden. Only 18 percent of overall respondents said that they outright opposed the relief legislation. Although support was lowest among Republicans, the level was still high — 59 percent of Republican respondents said that they supported the legislation, even though not a single Republican member of Congress has voted in favor of the bill.
NEW POLL – Overwhelming bipartisan support for the American Rescue Plan.
Support: 75%
Oppose: 18%Dem: 90% Support, 5% Oppose
GOP: 59% Support, 35% Oppose
IND: 71% Support, 20% Oppose pic.twitter.com/yShsA2GUH8— Josh Dorner (@JoshDorner) March 10, 2021
The relief legislation includes $1,400 direct checks for millions of Americans, unemployment support, financial support for state and local governments, and more. The legislation also includes an expansion of the child tax credit that is poised to deliver financial assistance to parents who are in-need across the country, potentially helping lift millions of children out of poverty. According to a recently released report from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment remained higher than pre-pandemic levels in February, and the total level of nonfarm payroll employment in the country remained significantly below pre-pandemic levels. People are still out of work, and need for assistance remains.
In the new Morning Consult polling, 45 percent of overall respondents said that they believe that the currently on-deck relief legislation provides an appropriate level of support, while 21 percent of overall respondents said that they thought it provided too much, and 24 percent of overall respondents indicated that they believed that it did not provide enough support. Meanwhile, 58 percent of overall respondents credited Democrats with the most responsibility for the relief legislation, although only 22 percent of Republican respondents similarly credited Democratic leaders.
Biden is slated to imminently sign the relief legislation, and direct relief checks are slated to go out soon after his signature. Democrats are also working on other legislative priorities like protecting voting rights against the ongoing Republican attempt to curtail access to voting under the guise of supposed security. In reality, these Republican efforts often result in fewer opportunities to vote within marginalized communities.
