When asked if Donald Trump should step away from his association with the Trump Organization while running for president, nearly seven out of 10 participants said he should, according to a new CNN/ORC Poll.
Donald Trump puts business over politics. Voters disapprove.
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The poll, released Thursday morning, comes at the same time that Trump is planning to leave for Scotland to promote a golf course that his company purchased there. The trip, which is to last two days, is strictly business — no politics involved, despite the political nature of the UK at the moment with the Brexit vote happening Thursday and Trump’s 2015 editorial in a Scottish newspaper that his business exploits in the country have prepared him for the presidency.
Trump’s trip will consist of a helicopter landing, ribbon cutting, family photo, and news conference.
“Traditionally, nominees travel overseas during this period to brush up their foreign policy depth,” Scott W. Reed, senior political strategist for the US Chamber of Commerce, told the New York Times. “Everyone knows this is the wrong thing for the nominee to be doing now, and it is amazing this can’t be stopped.”
Poll participants seem to agree — regardless of party affiliation. Fifty-six percent of Republicans, 71 percent of independents, and 77 percent of Democrats agreed that Trump should step down from the Trump Organization until his politics stint is over.
The poll also asked if Bill Clinton should continue working with the Clinton Foundation in the face of Hillary Clinton’s political involvement. Sixty percent said he should continue his work, and only 38 percent believed he should step down. Hillary resigned from the board of directors after declaring her candidacy.
The question then becomes what is acceptable in terms of business for a candidate and not a candidate’s spouse.
Trump has often mixed his business with his campaign, holding many campaign events at Trump-owned locations, raising questions about what’s appropriate for the campaign to spend money on. The voters, it seems, would like for him to have a bit more separation.
