“We have met the enemy and he is us.”
The line from cartoonist Walt Kelly, a parody of a famous declaration during the War of 1812, is truer now than ever, a Rasmussen poll finds.
The survey found 24% of likely U.S. voters think Joe Biden voters are America’s biggest enemy. The same number think China is enemy No. 1.
But nearly as many, 22%, regard Trump voters as the biggest enemy, while 10% view Russia and 7% see North Korea as the largest threat to the United States.
Among Republicans, 37% see Biden voters as the biggest enemy, edging the 34% who feel that way about China, according to the survey of 1,000 likely voters conducted Nov. 29-30.
Thirty-five percent of Democrats think Trump voters are the biggest threat, far above the danger posed by all the others.
Voters not affiliated with either major party rate China, Biden voters and Trump voters as equal threats.
Half of the nation, according to the poll, blame President Trump for the division. But nearly as many have no expectation of it getting better if Joe Biden is president.
“Men put China in first place, followed by Biden voters. Women rate Biden and Trump voters equally as the top threat,” the Rasmussen report said. “Middle-aged voters are more wary of Biden voters than Trump voters. Those under 40 and seniors see the two as about the same.”
Columnist Paul Bedard, in his “Washington Secrets” column, called it “the latest blow to American unity.”
The partisan divisions are “huge,” he wrote.
“And for independents, a pox on all three. ‘Voters not affiliated with either major party rate China, Biden voters and Trump voters all equal as threats,’ said Rasmussen,” Bedard said.
“That appears to be a jump in the division plaguing the country and far worse than the earlier findings in polls that Republicans and Democrats no longer want to be friends or even hire those with different political views.”
