An overwhelming majority of voters say the U.S. Senate should prioritize confirming President Biden’s cabinet nominees over former President Trump’s impeachment trial, a new Hill-HarrisX poll finds.
Eighty percent of registered voters in the Jan. 21-22 survey said that during the first weeks of the Biden administration, confirming the president’s Cabinet nominees should be the bigger priority for the upper chamber.
By contrast, 20 percent said the Senate should prioritize Trump’s impeachment trial.
Monday, the House formally sent the single article of impeachment against Trump to the Senate. Trump was charged for his involvement in the Capitol riots that occurred on Jan. 6 that results in 5 deaths.
Thus far, the Senate has confirmed several of Biden’s nominees including Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday. Yellen is the first female Treasury secretary in U.S. history. The Senate has also confirmed Gen. Lloyd Austin as the first Black Secretary of Defense last Friday.
“Voters of all stripes want Joe Biden to be able to govern effectively and focus on the two most pressing issues facing the country today, the coronavirus and the economy,” Dritan Nesho, CEO and chief pollster at HarrisX, told Hill.TV.
“They therefore are united in wanting the Senate to focus first on Biden’s cabinet appointees and a new round of stimulus, then impeachment, which is a much more divisive and partisan issue for voters,” Nesho added.
The most recent Hill-HarrisX poll was conducted online among 941 registered voters. It has a margin of error of +/- 3.19 percentage points.
—Gabriela Schulte
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