Half of GOP female primary voters “could not imagine” voting for Trump
After tonight’s performance, it’s no surprise that GOP Frontrunner Donald Trump has a problem with women. Trump made headlines last week for threatening to “spill the beans” on Ted Cruz’s wife, Heidi, and retweeting an unflattering comparison of Heidi Cruz to his wife, Melania. This is not new. Trump has used words such as “disgusting,” “fat pig,” and “dog” to describe women.
Recent polls have shown that Trump is in trouble with both GOP primary and general election female voters. Half of U.S. women say they have a “very unfavorable” view of Trump, and almost half of GOP female primary voters “could not imagine” voting for Trump, while Trump’s favorability is 21% positive/70% negative with female general election voters.
And while Trump might be the most outrageous in his misogynistic rhetoric, the other GOP candidates are not far behind. Whether it was John Kasich who said women “left their kitchens” to campaign for him or Ted Cruz who responded to criticisms of restrictive reproductive policies by saying there was no “rubber shortage in America,” the GOP candidates have fallen in line behind their offensive leader.
MISOGYNISTIC RHETORIC: NOTHING NEW FOR TRUMP:
Our Principles PAC ad: “Bimbo. Dog. Fat pig. Real quotes from Donald Trump about women.” “Bimbo. Dog. Fat pig. Real quotes from Donald Trump about women.” [Our Principles PAC ad, “Quotes,” 3/14/16]
Donald Trump said a lawyer who requested a medical break to pump breast milk for her infant daughter was “disgusting.” “Donald J. Trump seemed irritated. He had been grilled for two hours in a lawsuit over a failed Florida real estate project, and he told the lawyer that her questions were ‘very stupid.’ When the lawyer, Elizabeth Beck, asked for a medical break, Mr. Trump and his lawyers objected, demanding that the deposition continue. Ms. Beck said it was urgent — she needed to pump breast milk for her 3-month-old daughter, and she took the pump out to make her point. Mr. Trump erupted. ‘You’re disgusting,’ he told Ms. Beck, in a remark that is not disputed by either side. He then walked out of the room, ending the testimony for the day.” [New York Times, 7/28/15]
Donald Trump on Hillary Clinton using the bathroom during a debate: “It’s disgusting. I don’t want to talk about it. No, it’s too disgusting. Don’t say it, it’s disgusting.” “Trump also made crude references to Clinton’s bathroom break during Saturday’s Democratic debate, describing it as ‘disgusting.’ ‘What happened to her?’ Trump wondered. ‘I’m watching the debate, and she disappeared.’ He then solved his own riddle: ‘I know where she went. It’s disgusting. I don’t want to talk about it. No, it’s too disgusting. Don’t say it, it’s disgusting. We want to be very straight up, OK?’” [NBC News, 12/22/15]
TRUMP HAS A WOMEN PROBLEM:
Reuters: Half of American women have an unfavorable view of Trump. “Half of U.S. women say they have a “very unfavorable” view of the front-runner for the Republican presidential nomination, according to Reuters/Ipsos polling, up from the 40 percent who felt that way in October. The survey was taken from March 1-15, and included 5,400 respondents. The rise in anti-Trump sentiment among women could pose a problem for the New York billionaire in his quest for the White House. Women form just over half of the U.S. population, and they have turned out at higher rates than men in every election since 1996, according to the U.S. Census Bureau…Several women who oppose Trump, interviewed by Reuters this week, said their disapproval was based on a range of factors from his disparaging comments about women he dislikes – such as Fox News host Megyn Kelly – to his hard-line views on immigration and his ribald exchanges with rivals.” [Reuters, 3/17/16]
NBC/WSJ poll: About half of female Republican primary voters “could not imagine” voting for Trump, and his favorability among women overall was 21% positive/70% negative. “Let’s look at our latest NBC/WSJ poll to see how big this issue is: This month, about half (47 percent) of Republican female primary voters said they could not imagine themselves voting for Trump. (About 40 percent of male GOP primary voters said the same.)…When it comes to the general electorate, Trump has an even more pronounced problem with female voters. Trump’s favorability with women overall is a dismal 21 percent positive/ 70 (!) percent negative. With men, it’s 28 percent positive/ 59 percent negative.” [NBC, 3/24/16]