Wis. voters blame Trump for border bill failure in focus group

(NewsNation) — Wisconsin voters taking part in an Engagious/Sago focus group largely blame Republicans and former President Donald Trump for Congress’ failure to pass bipartisan border security legislation, according to a new report by Axios.

Engagious partners with Sago and Axios to conduct focus groups with voters who live in states that were considered the “10 most competitive” in the 2020 general election. 

In an online focus group made up of Wisconsin residents, six of whom were independents, four Democrats and three Republicans, all 13 said they were concerned about the situation at the U.S.-Mexico border.

Nine of them said a three-minute excerpt from the State of the Union speech, where President Joe Biden talked about immigration, made them upset at Trump. They were particularly frustrated at a statement Biden made in his speech where he said Trump called Republicans in Congress and demanded they block the proposal in the Senate.

If it’s true, one focus group participant said, “That’s just tacky.”

“He should have no say right now,” they said. “He’s not in an office of any sort.”

Another voter said this was another way Trump tries to “circumvent any and all political processes he can.”

Eight of the respondents, though, also said they think Trump would do a better job in protecting the border than Biden. One said Trump is “more action-oriented” and can “get things done, good or bad.”

Still, Axios writes that most of the participants said they’d choose Biden over Trump if the presidential election were held today.

The publication notes that a focus group isn’t statistically significant like a poll, though voters’ responses can show how they are thinking and talking about issues.