A loose consensus on Ukraine: Republicans and Democrats move towards an approximation of agreement

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As the situation worsens, American opinion on Ukraine has undergone a rapid shift. Prior to the direct attack on Ukraine, attitudes towards Ukraine trended towards apathy and concern about what the economic impact of interfering might be.

But that was then. Now that the rubber has hit the road, Americans are coalescing around support for sanctions against Russia, even if that means higher prices domestically.

That said, partisan opinion remains somewhat uneven, with Republicans significantly less certain that higher fuel prices are worth the cost of defending Ukraine than Democrats. CONTINUED

Clifford Young & Catherine Morris, Ipsos

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Interview with President Biden

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… On Friday, February 25, I sat down with the president in the China Room of the White House to talk about American democracy and the struggles we face.

It was an amazing time to be able to talk to the President. Russian president Vladimir Putin had just attacked Ukraine, Biden was preparing to give his first State of the Union address, and the president had just made the historic announcement of the nomination of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson for a seat on the Supreme Court. CONTINUED

Heather Cox Richardson, Letters from an American

Can Biden Improve His Grade With Democratic Voters?

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… In late January and earlier this week, I sat (virtually) in two focus groups of Democrats who primarily vote in presidential elections, but are not consistent midterm voters. … They were happy to be rid of Trump, but they didn’t find much to be excited about under Biden. …

This is the central challenge for Biden in improving his standing with his own voters. Trump helped inspire many new voters to go to the polls and support Democrats in 2018 and 2020. But, even though Trump’s gone, many of those who voted for Biden don’t believe that the political environment has gotten much better. They see a country that remains divided, polarized and angry. On top of it all, one Democrat from the late January group put it, “the person I voted for isn’t doing the things he said he would do.” CONTINUED

Amy Walter, Cook Political Report with Amy Walter

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Biden gets a bounce after the State of the Union, NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll shows

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After what’s been a bleak several months politically for President Biden, a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist survey finds he is seeing a significant boost in his approval ratings across the board following his State of the Union address and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. …

Biden appears to be benefiting from a rally-around-the-Ukrainian-flag moment. A whopping 83% of respondents said they support the economic sanctions the U.S. and allies have leveled against Russia. That includes 8 in 10 Republicans.

More than two-thirds (69%) said they would still support the sanctions even if they result in higher energy prices. CONTINUED

Domenico Montanaro, NPR News

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Biden gets ‘significant bounce’ in week navigating Russian war, State of the Union

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Russia’s war against Ukraine has unified Americans and bolstered support for President Joe Biden, whose approval numbers have risen dramatically after sinking for months, according to the latest PBS NewsHour/NPR/Marist poll.

About half of the U.S. public — 52 percent — said this week that they support how Biden is handling the situation in Ukraine. Two weeks ago, as Russia was getting increasingly aggressive toward its neighbor and had yet to invade, that number was much lower – roughly a third said they approved of his leadership on the looming crisis. …

Conducted in the 24 hours after Biden delivered his State of the Union address on March 1, this poll found that about half of U.S. adults – 47 percent – approve of his job as president so far, up 8 percentage points from 39 percent two weeks ago.

A leap in approval numbers of that magnitude is “a significant bounce,” said Lee Miringoff, who directs the Marist Institute for Public Opinion. “It’s an opportunity for him. This is a reset for his numbers and a rallying point when it comes to Ukraine.” CONTINUED

Laura Santhanam, PBS NewsHour

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Belief in Vaccination Misinformation Predicts Attitudes Toward Vaccinating Children

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While the vast majority of U.S. adults who are fully vaccinated and boosted against Covid-19 would be likely to recommend vaccinating a 5- to 11-year-old, over a third of fully vaccinated adults who have not had a booster shot have reservations about Covid-19 vaccination for a child that age, according to a survey data analysis by the Annenberg Public Policy Center (APPC) of the University of Pennsylvania.

APPC’s analysis of January survey data from its Annenberg Science Knowledge (ASK) national probability-based panel finds that 93% of U.S. adults who are vaccinated and boosted say they would be somewhat or very likely to recommend vaccinating a 5- to 11-year-old child if there were one in their household. But among vaccinated but not boosted adults, the percentage who would be likely to have such a child vaccinated against Covid-19 drops significantly, to 63%.

Adults who are vaccinated but unboosted are much more likely to believe misinformation about vaccination safety (for instance, that vaccines contain toxins such as antifreeze) than those who are both vaccinated and boosted, the analysis finds. And the more that one accepts these misconceptions about vaccinations, the less likely one is to recommend vaccinating a 5- to 11-year-old, APPC researchers said. CONTINUED

Annenberg Public Policy Center of the University of Pennsylvania

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