New Poll Shows Parties Switch Sides on Debt Limit
July 20, 2025
The just-passed “big, beautiful” budget bill generates one big swerve in public opinion.
Despite all the noise they make to the contrary, Republicans aren’t the fiscal hawks they historically have been. At least for the moment, Democrats have taken their place as watchdogs on the federal deficit.
That’s one upshot from the just-completed nationwide public opinion survey conducted for Our Common Purpose by Survey USA. The various topics covered in the poll will be incorporated into an assortment of upcoming articles.
Not surprisingly, given that the “big, beautiful” bill was championed by the President and rammed through Congress by the Republican majority, it is liked much better by Republicans – although even they aren’t all that thrilled. On a scale of -100 for dislike to +100 for like, the poll shows that Republicans weakly support the new law at +29. Independents and Democrats dislike it to the tune of -24 and -55, respectively.
The only degree of consensus comes in regard to the biggest provision of all. It’s hard to say no to a tax break. A majority of Republicans along with pluralities of independents and Democrats will take the extension of the 2017 tax cuts, thank you very much.
Otherwise the poll reveals predictable partisan reactions toward major provisions of the legislation . . . the tighter restrictions on food stamps and Medicaid . . . cutbacks on incentives for clean energy . . . conversely, more spending on the military and border security.
Independents, who should be the tie-breakers in this kind of standoff, align mainly with Democrats in thinking the bill isn’t so beautiful. A plurality of Independents are against the military and border security increases. And while they’d tighten restrictions on food stamps, they line up behind clean energy and Medicaid.
It does not come as a surprise that there are differences of opinion on legislation that was rammed through Congress without consultation by one party to the other. There was no reconciliation of the conflicts in the underlying values, for instance the tension between compassion and fiscal discipline. Nor in the aftermath is there any agreement on the overall effects. The poll shows Republicans believe the new law will be overall positive for themselves individually and positive for others as well. Democrats, meanwhile, see it as negative both to themselves individually and to others. Independents evenly divide on the effect to themselves individually but believe the overall effect on others will be negative.
Regardless, it comes as a steep cost.
The public opinion survey conducted last September by Our Common Purpose showed that nearly everyone either favored reducing the debt ceiling or at minimum holding to its current level. Republicans led the pack, with 89% backing one of those options or the other. Democrats and independents were right up there too.
But the new legislation has scrambled all that. Democrats, who typically get castigated for being the big spenders, are aghast. Asked in the new poll whether “we should be willing to accept that the bill will add another $3.3 trillion to the federal deficit,” 59% of Democrats said no. Only 21% were okay with the increase, and another 13% had mixed emotions. Independents answered in similar percentages.
Of course, the deficit has two components — how much comes in and how much goes out. Democrats might want to spend more, but at the same time the GOP is intent on reducing what is paid in. We’ve become accustomed in recent years to the obstreperous objections of the conservative Freedom Caucus to increases in the debt limit. They made life miserable for everyone from the Speaker of the House on down.
Not that the objectors have gone away but the new poll shows a turnabout in their constituency. Whether it’s out of self-interest or following their leader wherever he might take them, many Republicans have suddenly turned cavalier to the debt limit. To the question of whether we should be willing to accept adding $3.3 trillion to the deficit, 35% of Republicans agreed. Another 30% expressed mixed emotions. Only 24% said no. It’s a stunning swerve.
With the help of a compliant Congress, campaign promises made in search of votes are too easily enacted into law. Financing them by borrowing even more money is not only convenient, it has become far too easy.