Democratic voters are opposed to some provisions in the bipartisan border deal, though a majority support the overall agreement if it avoids another government shutdown, according to a recent Hill-HarrisX poll.
In the Feb. 12-13 survey of registered voters, 67 percent of Democratic respondents said they opposed building 55 miles of physical barriers on the U.S.-Mexico border, with 33 percent saying they supported that provision.
Democrats also opposed border fencing, with 54 percent against and 46 percent in favor.
The only major provision in the border deal that received majority support from Democratic voters was fully funding the Department of Homeland Security, the parent agency of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Seventy-one percent favored that action while 29 percent were against it.
Sixty-three percent of Democrats said they would support passing legislation that includes all of those major provisions if it avoids another shutdown. Funding for one quarter of the government is slated to lapse on Friday night unless a spending bill is signed into law.
President Trump is expected to sign the border deal before the Friday deadline and then declare a national emergency to build a border wall.
The poll results come as the White House tries to bolster conservative support for the measure, and as some progressive Democrats on Capitol Hill say they will vote against the bill because of the funding it provides for agencies like ICE.
Democratic base voter opposition to the border compromise is almost certain to grow after Thursday’s announcement from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and several other left-wing House members that they would vote against the bipartisan framework and the White House’s announcement of an imminent national emergency declaration.
Reps. Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) on Thursday said they would vote against the legislation because it increases ICE funding, allows more border fencing and boosting funds for detaining arrested illegal immigrants.
“By any reasonable measure, Donald Trump’s weaponization of ICE and CBP has been a failure,” the newly elected members said. “The Department of Homeland Security does not deserve an increase in funding, and that is why we intend to vote no on this funding package.”
Opposition to the compromise began to emerge last week after the Congressional Hispanic Caucus sent an open letter to both parties’ negotiators asking them not to include funding for a border wall and increased spending for ICE. One of the signatories to the letter was Rep. Ben Ray Luján (N.M.), the 4th-ranking Democrat in the House.
—Matthew Sheffield
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