Most Americans Say Stopgap Bill More Vital Than Dreamer Issue - Poll

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - A majority of US voters, if given a choice, would prefer that Congress and President Donald Trump find a way to keep the US government open beyond a midnight deadline and postpone efforts to let people brought to the United States illegally as children to remain in, according to a poll commissioned by CNN.

"[Fifty-Six] percent overall say approving a budget agreement to avoid a shutdown is more important than continuing the DACA [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals] program, while just 34 percent choose DACA over a shutdown," a report summarizing the poll stated on Friday.

However, 47 percent of those surveyed also said they would hold either Trump or Republicans in Congress responsible if the federal government runs out of money at Friday, when the latest stop-gap budget resolution expires.

White House budget director Mick Mulvaney on a potential shutdown: "There is no way you could lay this at the feet of the President of the United States. He is actively working to try to get a deal" https://t.co/Y6DcWaWUd2 pic.twitter.com/wr4AOvgJTy

— CNN (@CNN) 19 января 2018 г.

"Overall, about half of Americans say they would blame either Trump (21 percent) or his Republican counterparts in Congress (26 percent)," the report said.

Congress has previously approved three continuing resolutions to keep the government running without a budget in fiscal year 2018, which began nearly four months ago.

Democrats in the US Senate are refusing to support a fourth resolution unless the measure also makes DACA permanent.

Without a legislative fix, the legal status of DACA remains uncertain because the program was established with an executive order by former President Barack Obama, while the Constitution gives Congress the power to set immigration policy, not the president.