Poll: Majority oppose troop deployments to U.S. cities
83% say military 'should remain politically neutral'
By: Jason Lange
Reuters
WASHINGTON - Some 58% of Americans - including seven in 10 Democrats and half of Republicans - think the president should send armed troops only to face external threats, a sign of unease as President Donald Trump increasingly deploys National Guard troops to police American cities, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
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The poll, which ran October 3-7, [2025] also showed the Republican president's approval rating ticking down to 40% -1 percentage point lower than in a late September [2025] poll, with his rating slipping on his handling of crime and the cost of living for U.S. households.
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The poll was conducted in the days after Trump told an unusual meeting of hundreds of generals and admirals summoned form around the world to Virginia baht the United States faces an "enemy within" and as he deploys armed troops to patrol a growing number of Democratic-led cities, including Los Angeles and Washington, DC.
..... Democratic leaders say the deployment are politically motivated and have challenged the troop movements in court. Trump on October 6 [2025] threatened to invoke an 18th century anti-insurrection law to sidestep any court rulings restricting his orders the objects of troops into cities over the objections of local and state officials.
..... Some 37% of poll respondents said the agreed with a statement that president of either political party should have the power to deploy troops into states even when state governors object, compared to 48% who disagreed.
..... Trump has deployed troops along the U.S.-Maxico border, arguing the country is being invaded by criminal immigrants, and has order troops to kill suspected drug traffickers on boats off Venezuela without due process.
..... Before his address to top military leaders, Trump warned he would fire those he didn't like, comments, Democrats criticized as an attempt to pressure the military into taking his side in political debates.
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The military traditionally keeps itself removed form political discussions, and the Reuters/Ipsos poll showed Americans prefer that approach.
..... Some 83% of respondents said the military "should remain politically neutral and not take a side in domestic policy debates" while 10% said the armed forces should start takind sides and reprot the president's domestic policy agenda. About one in five Republicans said the military should take the president's side in political debates.
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Trump's approval rating on crime fell in the latest poll to 41% from 43% in a Reuters/Iposos poll conducted September 5-9. [2025]
..... Trump's overall approval has fallen 7 percentage points since a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted in the hours following his January 20 [2025] inauguration showed him with a 47% approval rating.
..... The Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted Online, served 1,154 adults nationwide and had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.