A new poll finds that just 26%, or barely 1 in 4, American voters support the idea of giving a universal basic income of $1,000 per month to all adults.
The idea of a universal basic income has gained popularity on the Left, and is the central proposal of Democrat Andrew Yang’s presidential run.
It’s actually surprising to me that it polls this low. Typically, ideas for the government to give out free money poll well, up until there are follow up questions about costs and trade-offs.
This is the case for other questions in the NPR/Marist poll, such as the one finding that 70% support the concept of giving individuals the option to receive Medicare, but that number drops to 41% if told that it would involve getting rid of private insurance.
Yet, the poll found just 26% said they backed a “guaranteed universal basic income of $1,000 per month for American adults.”
A Gallup poll taken last year showed Americans more divided on the idea — with 48% supportive, and 52% opposing. But Gallup did not include a dollar figure, and framed it “as a way to help Americans who lose their jobs because of advances in artificial intelligence.”
The universal basic income question was one part of the NPR/Marist, which found more broadly that President Trump remains unpopular, but that voters are lukewarm on Democrats, and particularly skeptical of their embrace of far Left policies such as reparations, decriminalizing illegal border crossings, and covering illegal immigrants through a free national health insurance program.
