Americans want Democrats to work with Trump
A strong majority of Americans say Democrats should look to cooperate with President Trump to strike deals, according to the inaugural Harvard-Harris poll provided exclusively by The Hill.
The survey found that 73 percent of voters want to see Democrats work with the president, against only 27 percent who said Democrats should resist Trump's every move.
The findings are significant as Democratic leaders in Congress are under growing pressure by their liberal base to obstruct the president's agenda. The poll shows the party is divided on how to deal with Trump: 52 percent of Democrats polled say they should cooperate with him on areas of agreement and 48 percent saying they shouldn't.
Those figures are nearly identical when the question is flipped - 68 percent of those polled say that Trump should be willing to compromise and find ways to work with Democrats in Congress. Thirty-two percent said Trump shouldn't bend at all, even if it means finding ways to achieve his agenda without congressional approval.
Republicans are similarly divided here, with 48 percent wanting compromise and 52 percent saying Trump should be unwavering.
"This shows that voters want Trump and Democrats to compromise and if they don't, they both may pay a heavy price with the electorate," said Mark Penn, the co-director of the Harvard-Harris poll.
The Hill will be working with Harvard-Harris throughout 2017.
Senate Democratic Leader Charles Schumer (N.Y.) has said he's hopeful he can work with Trump on issues where there is bipartisan overlap, like on trade, infrastructure spending, rebuilding the nation's inner cities, and closing the "carried interest" tax loophole.
The chances of bipartanship this year appear dim. More than 60 House Democrats boycotted Trump's inauguration and GOP leaders in Congress don't anticipate much, if any, help from the other side of the aisle.