The last several weeks have seen a flurry of activities regarding international students on college campuses. On May 27, Politico reported that the Trump administration would be requiring additional social media vetting for all those applying for student visas and pausing new interviews to prepare for the additional screening. The following week, Trump signed a proclamation restricting Harvard’s ability to enroll international students.
Data from the latest survey for Winning the Issues (June 12-14; 1,000 registered voters) sheds light on what voters are thinking about the situation. Asked whether they agree or disagree with the actions the Trump administration has taken recently regarding international students, nearly one in two (48%) disagree (36-48 agree-disagree), but with notable differences by party. Two-thirds of Republicans agree (66-16), while majorities of independents (27-56) and Democrats (14-73) disagree.
Yet there is more bipartisan agreement around the need to have sufficient vetting for international students to help safeguard national security. Some 74% of voters overall believe the statement While it is important to have students from other countries come to study in the US, it is equally important to have a thorough vetting process for these students (74-14 believe-do not believe). Some 84% of Republicans (84-7), 73% of independents (73-12), and 64% of Democrats (64-22) also agreed.
As for the idea that there should be a significant level of vetting to ensure they have no connection to terrorist organizations or harbor antisemitic views, two-thirds of voters believed this statement (67-20). This included majorities of Republicans (82-9), independents (64-19), and Democrats (55-31).
While the electorate may not agree with all the Trump administration’s actions, there is bipartisan agreement about the need for sufficient and in some cases additional vetting of international students.
