By a greater than 2-to-1 margin, Americans believe state officials are ordering the opening of businesses and the economy up too quickly in light of the spread of coronavirus, a new Pew Poll shows.
Sixty-nine percent of those polled said they’re biggest concern regarding the coronavirus is that state officials are too quickly lifting restrictions designed to curb the spread of the virus. Only 30% say they’re concerned that the restrictions are being lifted too slowly.
Nearly three-quarters (73%) say that the best way to help the US economy rebuild is to reduce the spread of infections so consumers feel safer patronizing businesses and returning to workplaces. Only 26% feel opening businesses in the face of rising coronavirus infections is effective.
In a rebuke of Trump Administration policy, 62% of respondents said that the US response to the coronavirus has been less effective than that of other wealthy, industrialized nations; just 13% believe it’s been more effective.
The poll shows a sharp difference between public opinion and the route proposed by President Trump and republican governors, who favor reopening businesses and schools despite rising coronavirus infections in their states.
Just 37% of those polled feel Trump has done a “good” or “excellent” job responding the virus–lower than his job approval rating of 41%, according to FiveThirtyEight.
Of their local medical facilities and hospitals, 88% feel they’ve done a “good” or “excellent” job, with 63% saying he same of public health officials.
When asked what was the main cause of the spread of the coronavirus, 53% said it was due to the lack of a proper federal response, whereas 28% said nothing could have been done to impede the spread.
The national survey by Pew Research Center, conducted July 27-Aug. 2 among 11,001 adults on the Center’s American Trends Panel.