More Americans say they want overall government spending reduced, yet large majorities support boosting funds for specific programs and oppose tax increases unless they target corporations and billionaires, according to RealClearPolling.
Drawing on recent data from a Feb. 6–9 Economist/YouGov poll, RealClearPolling reported that 43% of Americans said they want government spending to be decreased and just 28% want it increased. However, most Americans support increased federal spending on Social Security (69%), Medicare (67%), aid to the poor (64%), Medicaid (59%), and veterans’ programs (74%). According to the outlet, the five programs “account for roughly 49% to 52% of federal spending, or approximately $3.3 trillion to $3.5 trillion in 2024.”
RealClearPolling also found that despite preferring reduced government spending, Americans generally oppose cuts to most programs. The programs most often identified by respondents for cuts included foreign aid — with 21% supporting increases and 49% opposing — and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) — with 27% supporting increased funding and 49% opposing. However, RealClearPolling noted that “those two categories combined account for less than 1% of federal spending, meaning that even eliminating them entirely would still leave a large deficit.”
The poll suggested that Americans favor increasing corporate and billionaire taxes as a way to supplement government spending rather than raising income or Social Security taxes, according to RealClearPolling. The majority of respondents (53%) wanted their personal income taxes to be decreased and more supported decreasing Social Security and capital gains taxes than increasing them. Nearly half (49%) said they supported raising the corporate income tax, compared with 19% who opposed the move. Sixty-one percent said taxes on billionaires are too low, compared with 6% who said they are too high.
According to RealClearPolling, Americans may support higher taxes on billionaires due to their unpopularity, noting that most billionaires in the poll received net negative ratings. Mark Zuckerberg was the least popular, with a -42 rating, followed closely by Jeff Bezos, with a -41 rating.