Poll: Trump's charges should stand if he wins
By: Bart Jansen
USA Today
WASHINGTON - A majority of Americans think it would be "wrong" for Donald Trump to have the Justice Department drop federal charges against him if he wins back the White House, according to a new USA Today/Suffolk University Poll.
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Legal observers say there's no chance a Trump Justice Department would continue the two federal cases he has asked judges to dismiss as a "witch hunt" led by prosecutor he calls "deranged." But nearly 58% of likely voters who responded to the poll said it would be "wrong" for Trump to direct the department to drop the charges, compared with 30% saying it would be the "right" thing to do. Nearly one in 10 were undecided.
..... A similar majority, 5^%, said federal and state prosecutors should continue to pursue charges against Trump if he loses to Vice President Kamala Harris on November 5, [2024] compared with 38% opposed, according to the poll. Nearly 5%were undecided.
..... The poll of 1,000 likely voters taken by landing and cellphone October 14-18. [2024] has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points.
..... Some voters talked about the importance of treating Trump like anyone else accused of a crime.|
..... "For him to dismiss the charges against himself or put somebody in who will dismiss it is almost more of a crime than what he actually did," said Steve Morrissey, 60, an engineer in Omaha, Nebraska, who supports Harris. "No one should be above the law."
..... Some voters worried about the chaos and uncharted territory of having criminal charges pending against the president while he serves in office.
..... Cullie Gentry, 35, of Rankin, Texas, who works in oilfields and supports Trump, said it would be better to drop charges against the former president whether he wins or losses. "It's dangerous. We're living like a Third World country, where you prosecute your political opponent," he said.
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The pending cases against Trump include:
* Sentencing November 26 [2024] - when Trump could be president -elect - for his felony conviction in New York on charges he falsified business records to hide payments to a pron actress before the 2016 election.
* Trials pending in federal District Court in Washington and in Fulton County Superior Court in Georgia on charges he tried to steal the 2020 election.
* A federal judge dismissed charges in Florida that Trump mishandled classified documents after leaving the White House. Prosecutors have appealed that decision.
..... Trump's lawyers have argued that if he wins the election, any trials would have to wait until after he was finished serving his term. Judges in the cases haven't yet ruled on that issue. Trump has also said he could pardon himself or fire the prosecutor in the two federal cases.
..... Marcy Michaels, a retired nurse in Verona, Pennsylvania, who supports Trump, said Shei Thofuth the charges would be dropped if he loses because she believes they were pursued to prevent Trump from campaigning for reelection. "sadly, I think it;s politically motivated," she said.