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Monmouth Univ Poll – NATIONAL: No Opinion on Free Trade Pact

On Nov 5, 2015

The American public has not been following news about the Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement and most are unsure of its potential impact.  Opinion is divided on the idea of free trade deals in general and few can point to any impact – either positive or negative – from the two-decade old NAFTA pact.  The Monmouth University Poll also found that Pres. Barack Obama’s job approval rating has grown slightly more positive while ratings for Congress continue to wallow in the cellar.

The public is simply not tuned in to the recently negotiated Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement.  About 6-in-10 have heard about it, but only 12 percent say they have heard a lot while 47 percent have heard only a little.  A large majority (60 percent) of the public is not sure what impact the pact will have on average Americans.  The remainder are divided – 11 percent say the impact will be good, 19 percent say it will be bad, and 10 percent say it will not have much impact.  Among the small group who have heard a lot about the deal, though, nearly half (47 percent) say the impact will be bad for most Americans and just 23 percent say it will be good.

Overall, 24 percent of the public feels that free trade agreements in general are good for the United States and a nearly identical 26 percent say they are bad.  Another 46 percent are unsure.  Republicans (33 percent) are only slightly more likely than independents (26 percent) or Democrats (24 percent) to feel that these deals are bad for the country.

As a benchmark, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been in effect for more than 20 years, but few people have an opinion of that historic deal either.  Just 18 percent of the public feel this pact has been good for most Americans, but only 24 percent feel it has been bad.  Another 16 percent say it has had not much impact on the public and a 43 percent plurality are unsure what the effect has been.

“Free trade agreements like the TPP can provoke a firestorm on Capitol Hill and Wall Street. But the potential impact on Main Street remain difficult for most Americans to picture,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch.

The poll also looked at Pres. Obama’s overall standing with the public.  His job rating has been see-sawing back and forth over the past few months.  He currently has a positive 47 percent approve to 45 percent disapprove rating with the American public.  That’s higher than the ratings he held in September (45 percent – 49 percent) and August (45 percent – 50 percent), but it is similar to his job rating in July (47 percent – 46 percent).  Congress continues to earn a negative 17 percent approve to 71 percent disapprove job rating – a number that barely budges from poll to poll.  [Note: the current poll was conducted before Paul Ryan’s election as Speaker of the House.]  Two-thirds (66 percent) of the public say things in the country have gotten off on the wrong track and just 24 percent say they are going in the right direction, a finding which is virtually unchanged from prior polls.

The Monmouth University Poll was conducted by telephone from October 15 to 18, 2015 with 1,012 adults in the United States.   This sample has a margin of error of + 3.1 percent.  The poll was conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch

free trade agreement and most are unsure of its potential impact.  Opinion is divided on the idea of free trade deals in general and few can point to any impact – either positive or negative – from the two-decade old NAFTA pact.  The Monmouth University Poll also found that Pres. Barack Obama’s job approval rating has grown slightly more positive while ratings for Congress continue to wallow in the cellar.

The public is simply not tuned in to the recently negotiated Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement.  About 6-in-10 have heard about it, but only 12 percent say they have heard a lot while 47 percent have heard only a little.  A large majority (60 percent) of the public is not sure what impact the pact will have on average Americans.  The remainder are divided – 11 percent say the impact will be good, 19 percent say it will be bad, and 10 percent say it will not have much impact.  Among the small group who have heard a lot about the deal, though, nearly half (47 percent) say the impact will be bad for most Americans and just 23 percent say it will be good.

Overall, 24 percent of the public feels that free trade agreements in general are good for the United States and a nearly identical 26 percent say they are bad.  Another 46 percent are unsure.  Republicans (33 percent) are only slightly more likely than independents (26 percent) or Democrats (24 percent) to feel that these deals are bad for the country.

As a benchmark, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been in effect for more than 20 years, but few people have an opinion of that historic deal either.  Just 18 percent of the public feel this pact has been good for most Americans, but only 24 percent feel it has been bad.  Another 16 percent say it has had not much impact on the public and a 43 percent plurality are unsure what the effect has been.

“Free trade agreements like the TPP can provoke a firestorm on Capitol Hill and Wall Street. But the potential impact on Main Street remain difficult for most Americans to picture,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch.

The poll also looked at Pres. Obama’s overall standing with the public.  His job rating has been see-sawing back and forth over the past few months.  He currently has a positive 47 percent approve to 45 percent disapprove rating with the American public.  That’s higher than the ratings he held in September (45 percent – 49 percent) and August (45 percent – 50 percent), but it is similar to his job rating in July (47 percent – 46 percent).  Congress continues to earn a negative 17 percent approve to 71 percent disapprove job rating – a number that barely budges from poll to poll.  [Note: the current poll was conducted before Paul Ryan’s election as Speaker of the House.]  Two-thirds (66 percent) of the public say things in the country have gotten off on the wrong track and just 24 percent say they are going in the right direction, a finding which is virtually unchanged from prior polls.

The Monmouth University Poll was conducted by telephone from October 15 to 18, 2015 with 1,012 adults in the United States.   This sample has a margin of error of + 3.1 percent.  The poll was conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch

free trade agreement and most are unsure of its potential impact.  Opinion is divided on the idea of free trade deals in general and few can point to any impact – either positive or negative – from the two-decade old NAFTA pact.  The Monmouth University Poll also found that Pres. Barack Obama’s job approval rating has grown slightly more positive while ratings for Congress continue to wallow in the cellar.

The public is simply not tuned in to the recently negotiated Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement.  About 6-in-10 have heard about it, but only 12 percent say they have heard a lot while 47 percent have heard only a little.  A large majority (60 percent) of the public is not sure what impact the pact will have on average Americans.  The remainder are divided – 11 percent say the impact will be good, 19 percent say it will be bad, and 10 percent say it will not have much impact.  Among the small group who have heard a lot about the deal, though, nearly half (47 percent) say the impact will be bad for most Americans and just 23 percent say it will be good.

Overall, 24 percent of the public feels that free trade agreements in general are good for the United States and a nearly identical 26 percent say they are bad.  Another 46 percent are unsure.  Republicans (33 percent) are only slightly more likely than independents (26 percent) or Democrats (24 percent) to feel that these deals are bad for the country.

As a benchmark, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has been in effect for more than 20 years, but few people have an opinion of that historic deal either.  Just 18 percent of the public feel this pact has been good for most Americans, but only 24 percent feel it has been bad.  Another 16 percent say it has had not much impact on the public and a 43 percent plurality are unsure what the effect has been.

“Free trade agreements like the TPP can provoke a firestorm on Capitol Hill and Wall Street. But the potential impact on Main Street remain difficult for most Americans to picture,” said Patrick Murray, director of the independent Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch.

The poll also looked at Pres. Obama’s overall standing with the public.  His job rating has been see-sawing back and forth over the past few months.  He currently has a positive 47 percent approve to 45 percent disapprove rating with the American public.  That’s higher than the ratings he held in September (45 percent – 49 percent) and August (45 percent – 50 percent), but it is similar to his job rating in July (47 percent – 46 percent).  Congress continues to earn a negative 17 percent approve to 71 percent disapprove job rating – a number that barely budges from poll to poll.  [Note: the current poll was conducted before Paul Ryan’s election as Speaker of the House.]  Two-thirds (66 percent) of the public say things in the country have gotten off on the wrong track and just 24 percent say they are going in the right direction, a finding which is virtually unchanged from prior polls.

The Monmouth University Poll was conducted by telephone from October 15 to 18, 2015 with 1,012 adults in the United States.   This sample has a margin of error of + 3.1 percent.  The poll was conducted by the Monmouth University Polling Institute in West Long Branch.