Four-fifths of Americans say the federal government is doing a bad job handling the influx of immigrants at the southern border, according to a Pew Research Center poll released Friday.
While dissatisfaction was more prevalent among Republican respondents at 89%, nearly three-quarters of those who identified as Democrats also said the government is doing either a “somewhat bad” or “very bad” job dealing with the large number of immigrants at the border. All marks, total and in both parties, are the highest they have been during President Joe Biden’s administration.
The data also revealed that there is a strong partisan divide in labeling the severity of the matter. More than two-thirds of Republican respondents said it constituted a “crisis,” compared to just 22% on the Democratic side. Those in the latter group were more likely to refer to it as a “major problem” at 45%.
An open-ended question revealed two concerns more prominent than others: economic burdens associated with the influx of immigrants and security concerns, including crime, terrorism, and drugs.
The poll did not reveal a policy supported by both Democratic and Republican majorities to fix what 77% of people said was either a “crisis” or a “major problem.” However, on the whole, two ideas enjoyed majority support.
Most Democrats and nearly half of Republicans are in favor of increasing the number of immigration judges and staff to make decisions on asylum more quickly and creating more opportunities for people to immigrate to the United States legally. Regardless of party affiliation, 11% said more judges and staff would make the situation worse, and 15% were opposed to more opportunities for legal immigration.
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The border wall, which former President Donald Trump authorized and has pledged to resume construction of should he return to the White House next year, remains a more polarizing subject. Substantial expansion enjoys 72% support from Republicans but just 15% from Democrats. Almost half of Democrats say it would not make much difference, while 24% say it would make the situation worse.
The poll comes days after House Republicans impeached Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for the Biden administration’s handling of the record number of immigrants encountered at the southern border. He became just the second Cabinet member ever to be impeached.
