Poll Shows Trump Approval Rating At 41 Percent In Wisconsin

Newly elected presidents usually have a honeymoon period with positive job approval ratings.

But the Marquette University Law School poll released Wednesday shows 41 percent of registered voters approve of President Donald Trump’s performance so far, while 47 percent disapprove.

Charles Franklin, director of the poll, said that’s unusual so early in a president’s first term.

“No honeymoon at all,” Franklin said. “We saw that in national data … less approval for him than for the least approved new president since World War II.”

It is the first Marquette poll since Trump took office in January.

There is a stark partisan split when assessing the job Trump is doing. The poll shows 86 percent of Republicans approve of the job Trump is doing, while 89 percent of Democrats disapproved. Among independents, 38 percent approve and 44 disapprove.

At a more local level, Gov. Scott Walker’s approval rating is at 45 percent, little moved from where it sat in October.

The poll shows 45 percent of respondents approve of the job Walker is doing, while 48 percent disapprove. It was 42 percent in late October and 44 percent in early October.

The poll finds that 39 percent approve of the job performance of Republican Sen. Ron Johnson while 40 percent approve of Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin.

Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan’s approval rating sits at 45 percent.

The poll surveyed 800 registered voters between March 13 and March 16 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.

Majority Of Wisconsin Voters Want To Keep Health Care Law

A majority of Wisconsin voters surveyed say they want to keep the current national health care law in some form.

The poll asked what Congress should do about the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare.

The poll says 54 percent favored keeping the law and improving it, while 6 percent keep it as is with no changes. Only 8 percent say the law should be repealed outright, while 28 percent say it should be repealed and replaced.

The Republican-controlled House could vote on the GOP health care bill as soon as Thursday.

Poll Finds No Consensus On Wisconsin Roads Funding

The poll also shows 44 percent of respondents say money to pay for roads should be taken from other, unspecified programs. Another 35 percent say taxes or fees should be increased.

Walker opposes raises the gas tax or vehicle-related fees to pay for roads, while some Republicans are pushing for that to be considered.

Only 3 percent favor more borrowing, which Walker has proposed doing.

Franklin said the results show there is no consensus on the issue.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated at 3:45 p.m. March 22 to include reporting from WPR’s Chuck Quirmbach.