On Friday, President Trump signed a controversial executive order temporarily banning all refugees and immigrants from seven predominantly Muslim countries. The order, which suspends immigrants from entering for 90 days and halts refugee resettlement for 120 days, also directs the U.S. to prioritize the admission of Christians over Muslims.
A recent analysis by PRRI’s Robert Jones found that across the partisan divide there is little appetite for deporting immigrants coming to the U.S. illegally, even in the reddest states. However, nationally there is a chasm separating the views of Democrats and Republicans about immigrants coming to the U.S. from predominantly Muslim countries.
Concerns about the number of immigrants coming from predominantly Muslim countries is substantially higher among Republicans than Democrats. Republicans are more than twice as likely as Democrats to say there are too many immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries coming to the U.S. (50 percent vs. 23 percent, respectively). Nearly one in four (23 percent) Republicans believe immigrants from predominantly Muslim countries should not be allowed to enter the U.S. at all. In contrast, only nine percent of Democrats say immigrants from Muslim countries should be denied admission. Two-thirds (67 percent) of Democrats believe there are too few or the right amount of immigrants coming to the U.S. from Muslim countries.
Among the general public only about one-third (34 percent) of Americans believe there are too many immigrants coming to the U.S. from Muslim countries, while 15 percent say immigrants from these countries ought not to granted entry to the U.S. period. Roughly half (48 percent) believe there are too few or roughly the right amount of immigrants coming from predominantly Muslim countries.
Notably, there is much more partisan agreement in views of immigrants hailing from predominantly Christian countries—and much more acceptance of such immigrants. Nearly identical numbers of Republicans (82 percent) and Democrats (85 percent) say there are about the right amount or too few immigrants coming to the U.S. from Christian countries.
For more, read through the PRRI/Brookings immigration survey report.