New South Carolina polling from PPP is shining a bright light on what the Republican party doesn't want anyone to know about: The very deep racism that still exists in the GOP and Donald Trump has unleashed. Trump is leading at 35 percent, compared to 18 percent each for Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio, 10 percent for John Kasich, and 7 percent each for Jeb Bush and Ben Carson. But what's terrifying is who Trump is attracting:
-70% think the Confederate flag should still be flying over the State Capital, to only 20% who agree with it being taken down. In fact 38% of Trump voters say they wish the South had won the Civil War to only 24% glad the North won and 38% who aren't sure. Overall just 36% of Republican primary voters in the state are glad the North emerged victorious to 30% for the South, but Trump's the only one whose supporters actually wish the South had won.
-By an 80/9 spread, Trump voters support his proposed ban on Muslims entering the United States. In fact 31% would support a ban on homosexuals entering the United States as well, something no more than 17% of anyone else's voters think is a good idea. There's also 62/23 support among Trump voters for creating a national database of Muslims and 40/36 support for shutting down all the mosques in the United States, something no one else's voters back. Only 44% of Trump voters think the practice of Islam should even be legal at all in the United States, to 33% who think it should be illegal. To put all the views toward Muslims in context though, 32% of Trump voters continue to believe the policy of Japanese internment during World War II was a good one, compared to only 33% who oppose it and 35% who have no opinion one way or another.
Lovely. Yeah, it's just South Carolina and it's not all Republicans. But here's the thing: That's the Trump base. And Trump is winning in this primary, across almost every demographic. It's the Republican base now. Not just in South Carolina.
It's the logical outgrowth of the win-at-all-costs strategy the Republicans have reverted to. Trump isn't taking over the GOP. The GOP created Trump.