Photo:
RIA Novosti
Traditionally, midterm elections in the US are considered a kind of indicator of people’s attitude towards the policy of the President: if the Americans are happy, it will support the Pro-presidential party, if not in the Congress will strengthen the opposition. Now both houses are controlled by Pro-presidential Republicans and Democrats before the task is to win a majority in the house of representatives and the Senate, which has made it very difficult for any reforms trump.
Anti-Russian attacks on Donald trump have become almost the main weapon in the hands of the opposition democratic party, surpassing the headlines even of the internal policy of the President, which usually determines its national ranking. Considering how many forces and means Democrats and their supporting liberal press have already invested and continue to invest in the unwinding of these attacks, it is reasonable to assume that they will use during the election campaign in 2018.
Will this tactic the success of the Democrats? The latest public opinion poll conducted by the newspaper Politico and the School of public health at Harvard University, shows that is unlikely.
At first glance, it seems that some progress Democrats have made. Among the eleven key issues that may affect the election in 2018, the scandals attributed to Trump’s ties with Russia was in fourth place. The most important electoral factor is the fight against terrorism – it was mentioned by 39 percent of Americans. The second place battle resonance around health care reform (37 percent), followed by the proposals the White house on the Federal budget (34%), scandals about “Russian influence”, the President’s fight against illegal migration and its ban on the entry of citizens of the several States of the Middle East (31 percent). Behind the “Russian theme” has remained climate, defense and trade policy (30, 27 and 24 percent, respectively).
At the same time, more detailed analysis indicates that the importance of “Russian themes” for the election in 2018 is illusory. Thus, among those who are going to vote for candidates of Pro-presidential Republican party, the anti-Russian extravaganza in Washington is in last place in this list – it is important only for 12 percent. But for potential supporters of the Democrats is, on the contrary, the top topic at the head of the list is paying attention to her 49 percent.
But the domestic policy was equally interested in the supporters of both parties. For example, in health care reform following 31 percent of supporters of Republicans and 46 percent of Democrats, immigration, the balance 32/36, trade 20/30.
These figures demonstrate that the attitude of ordinary Americans to the speculation about “Russian influence” is deeply polarized along party lines. They are only interested in those who are already going to vote for Democrats. But sow the seed of doubt in the camp of the President, to influence their votes these insinuations Democrats cannot.
Another important indicator – this year it’s been a few special elections for vacant mandates in the lower house of Congress. And while the Democrats have failed to transform the anger against trump in his victory – their candidates were defeated not only in the traditional conservative States, but where the opposition was counting on success.
Republican voters believe neither the opposition politicians nor the liberal media are simply ignoring all the insinuations about Russia. This, by the way, and indicate the results of other polls, that the popularity rating among trump supported him in the election Americans did not change after the inauguration and is about 85 percent.
However, Democrats are still on the same path that led them to a Grand debacle in the elections of 2016. After all the attacks on trump in the spirit of “Kremlin’s puppet” was one of the main tools of the campaign of Hillary Clinton, but her success has not brought. From her and the Democrats turned away voters of several States in the North and North-East States, frustrated by falling living standards and not heard from Clinton’s answers to their questions, which led to the biggest political story of recent decades in American politics – the victory of Donald trump.