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Most Americans Blame Trump For Deadly Capitol Hill Riot, Coup Attempt, Poll Finds

Americans are nearly unanimous in opposition to the Wednesday, Jan. 6 attack on the United States Capitol, and about three-quarters said Donald Trump bears some responsibility for the violence, according to a new poll.

Donald Trump

Donald Trump

Photo Credit: Wikimedia/White House photo

But when only Republicans are considered, there's higher approval for the actions of the outgoing president - an illustration of a deep schism in American politics.

Released Friday, Jan. 15, the ABC News/Washington Post poll found about 90 percent of Americans are opposed to the Jan. 6 attempted coup at the Capitol Building. The riot forced politicians and staff to shelter in place, left five people dead, and dozens injured.

About seven out of 10 Americans said Trump bears at least some responsibility for the attack.

Among all Americans, about 56 percent said they favor efforts by Congress to bar Trump from ever holding elected office again, the poll said. 

Slightly fewer people - 54 percent - said they want to see Trump criminally charged with inciting a riot for having encouraged supporters to storm on the Capitol.

The poll asked a little more than 1,000 American adults about their approval of the president, the Jan. 6 attack, Trump's legacy, and what should happen next.

Here are some highlights:

APPROVAL RATING

When Trump leaves office on Jan. 20 he will do so with a 38 percent career average approval rating - the lowest of any president in modern polling. He’ll set another record by being the only president to never achieve a majority approval rating at any point during his term.

Trump’s approval rating among Republicans, however, is 79 percent, the poll found

FAITH IN DEMOCRACY

On the heels of this wild election cycle, only 20 percent of Americans said they are pessimistic about the future of the U.S. system of government - a stat that hasn’t changed much since the 1970s, according to ABC and the Washington Post.

ELECTION LIES

Around 63 percent of Americans didn’t buy into Trump’s lies about his election loss being a result of fraud. Among those who did believe Trump’s fabrications, 65 percent are Republicans.

GOP'S FUTURE

The poll found that most Americans - 69 percent - think Republican leaders should move their party away from Trump’s influence.

Yet among Republicans, a majority - 60 percent - said they want to continue to follow Trump. 

The ABC News/Washington Post poll was conducted by landline and cell phone Jan. 10-13 in English and Spanish among a random national sample of 1,002 adults. The survey was produced by Langer Research Associates in New York City.

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