Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump

Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump Gerald Herbert/AP

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Many Feds Like Trump, but Nearly All Trump Supporters Hate Government

The distrust is not mutual.

Eric Katz

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Eric Katz
Eric Katz
Senior Correspondent

Donald Trump supporters do not like federal employees very much, though the feeling does not appear to be mutual.

Trump supporters are nearly united in their frustration with federal government policies, according to a new survey from Rasmussen Reports, with 96 percent saying they are “angry” at them. Just 36 percent of Hillary Clinton supporters said the same.

About six in 10 backers of the Republican nominee say the federal government rarely or never does the right thing. Nine in 10 disagree that federal government is a “protector of individual liberty.”

The differing views between Clinton and Trump supporters were not shared across the board. By comparison, 82 percent of both Clinton and Trump supporters expressed anger with Congress.

While Trump backers hold disdain for federal government, those who staff it have shown some positive feelings for the Republican nominee. Clinton led Trump by 5 percentage points in a July survey by Government Business Council, Government Executive Media Group’s research arm. Trump led his Republican opponents throughout the primary process, however, with more Republican and Republican-leaning feds choosing Trump than any other candidate in several GBC polls in 2015 and 2016. 

While Trump’s governmentwide favorability rating was significantly under water, Republican civil servants overwhelmingly viewed him favorably, with a 66 percent to 30 percent margin. A January GBC poll, however, found one in four feds would consider leaving their jobs if Trump were elected president.

Rasmussen surveyed 1,000 likely voters on Aug. 23-24. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent. The GBC poll surveyed 768 federal employees from July 12-18, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percent. 

NEXT STORY: Communicating to a Cynical Workforce

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