Republicans divided over Trump’s Gaza plan

Americans largely oppose president’s plan to take control of the Gaza Strip, new polls find, with Republicans sharply divided over the proposal.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

Few Americans support President Donald Trump’s plan to place the war-torn Gaza Strip under U.S. control, with even the president’s own party sharply divided over the proposal.

According to a poll published by Quinnipiac University on Wednesday, just 22% of registered voters say they back Trump’s bid to take over the Gaza Strip, compared to 62% of respondents who oppose it.

A plurality of Republicans back the plan, with 49% saying they support it, compared to 32% who oppose it.

However, just 1% of Democrats support the proposal, compared to 94% who oppose it. Among independents, just 17% say they support the plan, compared to 66% who oppose it.

“The grand plan to transform a shattered Gaza into a lavish American restoration project on the Mediterranean has many more skeptics than supporters,” said Quinnipiac University polling analyst Tim Malloy.

Respondents were somewhat more supportive of Trump’s handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict, with 38% saying they approved of his policies on the issue, including 78% of Republicans, 37% of independents, and 4% of Democrats.

By contrast, 47% of registered voters disapprove, including 9% of Republicans, 48% of independents, and 87% of Democrats.

A second poll released Wednesday also found little support for Trump’s Gaza plan.

The survey, conducted by Emerson College Polling, found that just 18% of Americans support Trump’s Gaza plan, with 58% opposing it.

Unlike the Quinnipiac poll, Emerson found that a plurality of Republicans oppose the proposal by a margin of 45% against to 31% in favor. Just 12% of Democrats and 10% of independents back the plan.

Trump’s Gaza plan appears to be significantly more popular among Israelis, however, with 75% of Israeli Jews telling the Lazar Research Institute in a recent poll that they support the proposal.

The Quinnipiac poll surveyed 1,039 self-identified registered voters nationwide from February 13th through the 17th, and has a margin of error of +/- 3.0 points.

The Emerson poll surveyed 1,000 registered voters and has a similar margin of error. It was conducted from February 15th through the 17th.