A month ago, only 4% of American citizens said terrorism was the most important issue in the country. Since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, that number has skyrocketed to 19%.
Benefiting the most from the fear is Republican presidential frontrunner Donald Trump, whose hateful rhetoric includes the suggestion that US mosques should be monitored, and a call to ban Muslims from entering the country.
The New York Times found that more than four in 10 Republican voters say the most important quality in a candidate is strong leadership; over honesty, empathy, experience or electability — and those voters strongly favor the billionaire former reality star.
“He’ll keep a sharp eye on those Muslims,” Bettina Norden, 60, a farmer in Springfield, Oregon, told the Times in a follow-up interview. “He’ll keep the Patriot Act together. He’ll watch immigration. Stop the Muslims from immigrating.”
Seven in 10 Republican primary voters also stated that they are confident in how Trump would confront terrorism.
The Times noted that it is not just Republicans who are worried about terrorism, however.
The poll found that 44% of the public, across party lines, believes that an attack is “very” likely to happen in the next few months — the highest it has been in Times/CBS News polls since October 2001, one month after the deadly attacks of 9/11.
The national survey, released on Thursday, was conducted from December 4 to 8. It surveyed 1,275 adults, 431 of which were Republican primary voters and 384 were Democratic primary voters. The poll had a margin of error of +/- 3% for all adults and +/- 6% for both Democratic and Republican primary voters.
