Poll: Election brings out the worst in Americans, ends friendships

Trump supporters get wound up at August's Donald Trump rally in Everett. A new national poll finds that two-third of Americans feel the harsh language of the 2016 presidential campaign is unjustified. But nearly half of Trump supporters approve the tone of the campaign. "Half of Trump supporters seem to be saying, 'Let the expletives fly,'" said Patrick Murray of the Monmouth University Polling Institute. less Trump supporters get wound up at August's Donald Trump rally in Everett. A new national poll finds that two-third of Americans feel the harsh language of the 2016 presidential campaign is unjustified. But ... more Photo: GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM Photo: GENNA MARTIN, SEATTLEPI.COM Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Poll: Election brings out the worst in Americans, ends friendships 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

Seven out of ten American voters feel that the 2016 presidential contest has brought out the worst in people with a majority giving thumbs down to the campaign's nastiness, according to a new national Monmouth University poll.

The survey found that 7 percent of voters report having lost or terminated a friendship because of this year's race for the White House.

The agreement that the campaign is bringing out the worst in us is bipartisan -- 78 percent of Democrats, 65 percent of Republicans and 66 percent of Independents agree -- but with one key parting of ways.

Just 30 percent of voters agree that harsh language used in the 2016 campaign is justified given the current state of the nation: 65 percent say it is unjustified.

But . . .

Nearly half of Donald Trump's voters (47 percent) say the mean language is justified, compared to just 17 percent of those voting for Hillary Clinton, and 21 percent of those undecided or voting for third party candidates.

"Half of Trump supporters seem to be saying, 'Let the expletives fly,' but many voters blame both sides equally for the negative tone of this year's campaign," said Patrick Murray, who directs the Monmouth University Polling Institute.

When asked who delivers more harsh language, 50 percent gave a plague-on-both-houses response giving equal blame to Trump and Clinton supporters.

But 37 percent said more such language is coming from Trump, with just 11 percent putting the onus on the Clinton camp.

The banal talking heads of Cable TV have talked endlessly about the "angry" voters of 2016 and the anger building up in America, mainly to describe how Trump triumphed over 16 other candidates to win the Republican nomination.

Not so, Monmouth found, doing something those talking heads rarely do -- talking to voters.

Just 20 percent of those polled said they are "angry" with Washington, D.C. A far higher percentage simply voiced disappointment, with 66 percent saying "dissatisfied" is a better way of describing how they feel.

There is one exception. President Obama gets a 53 percent job approval rating, with 43 percent disapproving of the job that the 44th President is doing.

Congress gets a thumbs-up rating of just 15 percent, with 77 percent disapproving of the job that lawmakers are doing.

The poll has also recorded a learning experience by Americans on terrorism.

A 53 percent majority now agree that homegrown terrorists now pose a bigger threat to the United States than terrorists from overseas who inflitrate the country (32 percent).

The poll contains bad news for Donald Trump on immigration.

Only 32 percent of those surveyed back a blanket ban on immigration from countries with a history of terrorist acts against the West, and only 17 percent would ban all Muslims from entering the United States.

The Monmouth University Poll interviewed 802 registered voters between September 22 and 25. The survey has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percent.