The media may want to stop casting Donald Trump voters as ignorant buffoons. In a new poll just released from JustFacts.com, it turns out Trump supporters are more in tune with the current state of our economy, education, etc. than Clinton supporters. Or, according to the headline, they are less "ignorant" than Clinton voters.
First, a rundown of the results.
In total, the rates at which voters gave the correct answers varied from a high of 43% for Trump voters to a low of 31% for Clinton voters:
- 43% for Trump voters.
- 37% for 35 to 64 year olds.
- 37% for males.
- 35% for undecided voters.
- 34% for females.
- 34% for 65+ year olds.
- 31% for Clinton voters.
The 16 questions asked of the respondents were broken into the categories of education, taxes, spending, the national debt, global warming, pollution, energy, hunger, social security and health care. Here's one example.
Question 9: What about federal government debt? The average U.S. household owes about $118,000 in consumer debt, such as mortgages and credit cards. Thinking about all federal government debt broken down on a per-household basis, do you think federal debt amounts to more or less than $118,000 per U.S. household?
Correct Answer: More than $118,000. Federal debt is now $19.5 trillion or $156,000 for every household in the United States. Such levels of debt can have far-reaching negative consequences like reduced living standards and reduced life expectancies.
Correct answer given by 65% of all voters, 54% of Clinton voters, 80% of Trump voters, 63% of undecided voters, 65% of males, 65% of females, 68% of 35 to 64 year olds, and 63% of 65+ year olds.
Since Trump voters are apparently more aware of their surroundings, are Clinton voters the ones blindly following their nominee? Not necessarily. But, it would help if voters understood our country's problems before figuring out which candidate can fix them.