Did you know Trump is more trustworthy than family and religious leaders?
Donald Trump is an incredibly popular person among his political supporters. But did you know that some of the former president's fans see him as more trustworthy than their families? It might sound crazy but a 2023 poll proved it.
Trump is apparently the source of all truth in the world for some according to the poll that was conducted by CBS News and YouGov on August 20th, 2023. It found that the former president's supporters trusted him above family, friends, and even religious leaders.
Polling discovered several interesting findings. For example, most Republican primary voters (77%) thought that the former president's then-recent indictment in Georgia was a move motivated by politics.
Another interesting tidbit was that voters still seemed to really like Trump back in August 2023. Most liked him for a variety of reasons but 99% said it was because things were better under Trump and 95% responded said it was because he fought for people like them.
Trump was also seen as the most honest and trustworthy candidate with 61% of people who said honesty was important. Ron DeSantis, still somewhat of a political threat to the former president at the time as his primary rival, was the runner-up with 17% of the vote.
However, the most interesting discovery of the polling was the finding that Trump was a pivotal figure of truth in the lives of many GOP primary voters. The former president beat out several other figures and institutions as a more far trustworthy figure.
71% of those surveyed said they felt as if the former president was telling them the truth while only 56% trusted conservative media figures and 42% trusted religious leaders. That was and still is a very big deal!
Only 63% of those polled said their family and friends told them the truth, meaning the former president was a more trustworthy figure in their lives than those closest to them.
"Trump voters believe Trump is more likely to tell them the truth than their friends and family,” wrote University London College Global Politics professor Brian Klass on Twitter.
“Again: to understand the modern GOP, you need to understand what an authoritarian cult of personality is, because that's what it has become,” Klass continued.
While the poll only surveyed 2,061 U.S. adults, its results were still worrying since they revealed that the former president has clearly become something more than just a political figure to those who support him.
Klass wasn’t wrong in suggesting that a cult of personality has developed around the GOP and the former president but it has not seemed to account for Trump’s very real issue with telling the truth.
The CBS News and YouGov poll also revealed that Trump still had a commanding lead over his primary opponents with 62% of respondents saying they would vote for Trump. As of March 24, the former president has essentially won the primary and is the presumed GOP candidate for 2024.
“Trump voters' affinity for him seems to insulate the former president from attacks whether or not he debates this week because voters basically say they aren't receptive to such criticism,” a CBS News report on the August polling explained.
Whether or not Trump will carry his ability to avoid criticism from his supporters into the general election has yet to be seen, but he is still facing several problems, including his 91 charges across four criminal cases and the issues developing around his finances after being ordered to $354.9 million in his civil fraud case.
However, it is unlikely that supporters who see Trump as more trustworthy than their family, friends, and religious leaders will be swayed by any arguments to vote against in him November 2024.