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Republicans and Democrats sharply disagree over support for the military operation President Donald Trump ordered to arrest Venezuelan leader Nicholas Maduro, according to a new national poll.
Sixty-five percent of Republicans questioned in the survey by Reuters/Ipsos said they backed the strike, carried out by the U.S. military before dawn on Saturday, in which Maduro was captured and handed over to federal authorities for prosecution on drug trafficking charges.
But only 23% of Independents and just 11% of Democrats questioned in the survey, which was conducted Sunday and Monday, approved of the military operation in Venezuela.
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Nearly two-thirds of Democrats and 35% of Independents, but just 5% of Republicans, said they didn’t approve of the strike.
Overall, a third of those questioned approved of the mission, a third had no opinion or didn’t answer the question, and 34% disapproved.
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Trump, who has long criticized foreign interventions by his predecessors in the White House, has said the U.S. will “run” Venezuela. “We’re in charge,” the president reiterated to reporters.
But 72% of all adults questioned in the survey, including 90% of Democrats, 74% of Independents and 54% of Republicans, said they worry the U.S. will get too involved in Venezuela.
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The president on Monday said he’s prepared to send U.S. ground troops to Venezuela if leaders in the South American nation don’t cooperate. And vowing to overhaul and rebuild Venezuela’s oil industry, Trump said the U.S. needs “total access” to the country’s expansive oil fields.
Sixty percent of Republicans surveyed said they supported sending U.S. troops to Venezuela, compared to just 30% of all adults.
But reflecting concerns among those in the GOP who advocate an America First agenda, only 43% of Republican respondents agreed with the statement, “The United States should have a policy of dominating affairs in the Western Hemisphere,” with 19% disagreeing and the remainder unsure or not answering the question.
The president’s approval rating in the survey stood at 42%, up three points from the previous Reuters/Ipsos survey, which was conducted in December.
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