A majority of Americans support sending U.S. troops to the southern border with Mexico, and many say President Donald Trump is doing a better job at the start of his second term than he did in his first, according to a new Quinnipiac University National Poll released Wednesday. Sixty percent of Americans say they approve of Trump sending troops to the border to enforce security.

What You Need To Know

  • A majority of Americans (60%) support sending U.S. troops to the southern border with Mexico

  • Many say President Donald Trump is doing a better job in his second term than he did in his first, according to a new Quinnipiac University National Poll released Wednesday

  • 46% approve of the job Trump is doing so far compared with 36% who approved at the same point in his first term

  • The economy remains the most urgent issue facing the country, according to the poll

“The huge deployment of boots on the ground is not to a dicey, far-away war theater but to the American border,” Quinnipiac University Polling Analyst Tim Malloy said in a statement. “A majority of voters are just fine with that.”

Americans are more divided on who should be deported. While 44% of voters support deporting all undocumented immigrants and sending them back to the countries they came from, 39% only support deporting undocumented immigrants convicted of violent crimes. Six percent oppose both scenarios.

A majority of voters (61%) in the new poll also support birthright citizenship, though 30% say the Constitutional right should be done away with so children of non-citizens no longer automatically receive citizenship.

An even greater majority of those polled (70%) support the H-1B visa program that allows hired skilled workers from other countries to temporarily work in the U.S., with 18% opposing the program.

Almost half (46%) of voters say they approve of the job Trump is doing; 43% disapprove and 11% did not have an opinion. In January 2017, about a week after Trump was sworn in for his first term, 36% of voters said he was doing a good job, 44% disapproved and 19% did not have an opinion. 

The new Quinnipiac poll found the Republican party overall growing in favorability compared with the Democratic party. It found 43% of voters have a positive opinion about the Republican party, compared with just 31% of voters who have a favorable opinion of the Democratic party. It is the largest gap in favorability between the two parties since Quinnipiac first began asking the question in 2008.

Still, a majority of voters (54%) say they’re optimistic about Trump’s second term, though they are less sure of the way he is staffing his administration. Just 43% approve of his administration staff, compared with 45% who disapprove.

An even larger majority of voters (53%) disapprove of Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk playing a major role in the Trump administration.

The economy remains the most urgent issue facing the country, according to the poll. Preserving democracy in the United States and immigration were also in the top three.