Republicans may be willing to stick with President Donald Trump on almost everything, but his recent push to seize control of Greenland has alienated many in his own party, according to a new AP-NORC poll.
A poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that about 7 in 10 US adults disapprove of Trump’s handling of Greenland, a semi-autonomous territory of NATO ally Denmark.
That’s more than the share of those who don’t like how he’s handling foreign policy in general, suggesting that Trump’s approach to Greenland has created a weak spot for the administration. About 24 percent of American adults approve of Trump’s approach to Greenland.
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Republicans aren’t thrilled either. About half disapprove of his attempt to turn the ice sheet into US territory, something Trump has insisted is essential to national security in the Arctic, while about half approve.
The survey was conducted Feb. 5-8, after Trump decided to lift tariffs designed to pressure European countries to support US control of Greenland, but after his week-long push for US intervention over the island.
The AP-NORC survey of 1,156 adults was conducted Feb. 5-8 using a probability-based sample drawn from NORC’s AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population.
The margin of sampling error for adults is plus or minus 3.9 percentage points overall. The margin of sampling error for Republicans overall is plus or minus 6.1 percentage points.
About half of Republicans disapprove of Trump in Greenland
Trump’s base is normally staunchly behind him, so Greenland stands out as an exception.
The marks represent Trump’s lowest approval rating among Republicans on the poll’s list of key issues, including the economy and immigration — where he approves about 8 out of 10 — and foreign policy in general. About 7 in 10 Republicans approve of his overall approach to foreign policy.
Trump has argued that the US needs Greenland to counter threats from Russia and China in the Arctic region, even though America already has a military presence there.
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Other recent polls, including a Pew Research Center poll conducted in January, found that Republicans were largely split on whether the U.S. should take over Greenland, while Americans were overall opposed.
Ayman Amir, a 46-year-old Trump supporter from Houston, Texas, said he agrees that Greenland is of strategic importance to the United States military. But that doesn’t mean he thinks Trump should claim it.
“We can’t take it by force. We don’t have the right to,” Amir said. “You can’t blame Russia for what it’s doing in Ukraine and then do the same thing. You can’t do this.”
Trump’s overall foreign policy approval rating remains steady
The president dropped threats to seize the territory by force late last month after he said a framework for an agreement on Greenland’s access had been reached with the help of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
The clash represents just one of the moves Trump has taken over the past year to strain relations with key allies. Western leaders are focusing on transatlantic tensions at the Munich Security Conference this week.
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In Greenland, Trump has few vocal supporters at home and abroad.
While Trump has made significant moves to gain control of Greenland, his overall approval rating on the foreign policy issue has remained steady. About 4 in 10 US adults approve of Trump’s approach to foreign policy, a measure that has not changed in recent months.
Young Republicans particularly disagree with Greenland’s approach
Younger Republicans in particular are unlikely to agree with Trump’s handling of the situation.
About 6 in 10 Republicans under 45 say they disapprove of his handling of Greenland, compared to about 4 in 10 older Republicans.
That 4 in 10 who approve of Trump’s actions in Greenland is far lower than young Republicans’ approval on foreign policy, the economy or immigration.
Independent voter Aaron Gunnoe, 29, an engineer from Marion, Ohio, was confused by Trump’s aggressive stance toward the NATO ally.
“It’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard,” he said. “It’s owned by someone else. That should be the end of it.”