The Democrat Party’s open borders, mass immigration platform for the upcoming 2020 presidential election is turning off moderate Democrat voters, a new poll reveals.
For months now, Democrats running in the presidential primary have largely presented platforms promoting amnesty for all 11 to 22 million illegal aliens, free health care for illegal aliens, and the decriminalization of illegal immigration at the United States-Mexico border.
This open borders agenda, spearheaded by a select group of white liberals in the party’s ranks, is causing a rift among Democrats.
The latest NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist Poll finds that a plurality of 47 percent of moderate Democrat voters say providing free health care to illegal aliens is a “bad idea” as opposed to 43 percent who say it is a “good idea.”
For voters who describe themselves as “moderates,” a majority of 56 percent called free health care for illegal aliens a bad idea, and only about 37 percent said it is a good idea.
Even among the Democrats’ most ardent liberals, the policy of having American taxpayers pay for the free health care of illegal aliens does not come with sweeping, unanimous support. While 57 percent of voters who call themselves “very-liberal Liberals” said they support the plan, about 35 percent — more than one-in-three — said they oppose such a plan.
Decriminalizing illegal immigration at the U.S.-Mexico border is even more unpopular with moderate Democrats. Nearly six-in-ten moderate Democrat voters say decriminalizing illegal border crossings is a bad idea, and only 34 percent say it is a good idea.
Similarly, nearly seven-in-ten moderates call the effort to decriminalize illegal immigration a bad idea, with only about 25 percent of moderates supporting the plan.
As is free health care for illegal aliens, decriminalizing illegal border crossings does not garner overwhelmingly broad support from the Democrats’ far-left base. For very-liberal Liberal voters, about 50 percent say decriminalizing illegal immigration is a good idea, and about 41 percent call it a bad idea.
Republicans and swing voters, on the other hand, are much more unified in their disliking of the Democrats’ open borders platform for the upcoming election.
For example, nearly seven-in-ten swing voters and 95 percent of Republicans called free health care for illegal aliens a bad idea, with less than 30 percent of swing voters and only six percent of Republicans supporting the plan.
When it comes to decriminalizing illegal immigration, about 68 percent of swing voters and 87 percent of Republicans call the effort a bad idea, while less than 25 percent of swing voters and ten percent of Republicans say it is a good idea.
U.S. taxpayer-funded free health care for illegal aliens would likely cost Americans upwards of $660 billion over ten years. Similarly, decriminalizing illegal immigration would likely drive millions of foreign nationals to the U.S.-Mexico border every year and allow them to enter the country, take a job, and resettle permanently in American communities.
The poll surveyed 1,336 American adults between July 15 and July 17 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percentage points.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.