What They Told Us: Reviewing Last Week’s Key Polls - Week Ending July 1, 2017

At week’s end, President Trump’s much-maligned temporary ban on visitors from Syria, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen was at least partially in place, courtesy of the U.S. Supreme Court.

Despite the complaints of opponents, voters agree the ban is an anti-terrorist measure, not anti-Muslim.

Following the attack in Manchester, England by a radical Islamic terrorist in May, 77% of Americans said a similar terrorist attack is likely to occur here within the next year.

The radical Islamic State group (ISIS) took credit for both the recent terror attacks in England. Eighty-seven percent (87%) of U.S. voters consider ISIS a serious threat to this country, and 69% believe the group must be completely destroyed to end its attacks.

The Supreme Court this week also agreed to hear the case of a suburban Denver baker who was prosecuted for refusing for religious reasons to make a wedding cake for a gay couple. Most voters agree the baker has the right to say no.

Two years since being legalized nationwide, more than half of voters continue to support same-sex marriage.

Nearly half of voters, however, agree with a request by the heads of the Army, Air Force and Navy to delay military enlistments by openly transgender people pending further study.

The president earned a monthly job approval of 46% in June, a one-point improvement from May. Trump’s monthly approval rating has been falling steadily from a high of 51% in February. This is the first month his approval has gone up since he took office.

On Friday, 46% approved of the job the president is doing.

Most voters continue to think the president and congressional Republicans will make significant changes to Obamacare in the near future, but most also worry those changes will go too far.

Even more Democrats now think Bernie Sanders is their party's likely presidential nominee in 2020 despite calls for new Democratic leadership and news reports about an FBI probe of Sanders' wife's financial dealings as a college president.

Are Democrats getting tired of their “toxic” House leader Nancy Pelosi?

Only 31% of Democratic voters think the current national leadership of their party is representative of most Democrats.

Still, 55% of Democrats believe it’s better for their party if they continue to oppose the president every way possible, up from 44% in February.

The House on Thursday passed legislation denying federal grants to sanctuary cities and increasing the penalties for deported illegal immigrants who return to the United States. Fifty-two percent (52%) of voters said late last year that the government should cut off federal funding to cities that offer sanctuary to illegal immigrants by refusing to cooperate with immigration authorities.

The president said at a recent rally that immigrants "must be able to support themselves financially," and called for stricter enforcement of laws that prevent them from receiving welfare until they’ve been in the United States at least five years. Sixty-two percent (62%) favor barring new immigrants from welfare benefits for at least five years.

But there's been a dramatic shift in attitudes about illegal immigration in recent years, with voters now for the first time ever putting legalizing those here illegally over more border control.

Seventy-five percent (75%) of Republicans and 50% of unaffiliated voters still think it’s best for the United States to tightly control who comes into the country. Fifty-four percent (54%) of Democrats think it’s better to have open borders for anyone but criminals or terrorists.

In other surveys last week:

-- Thirty-seven percent (37%) of voters say the country is headed in the right direction.

-- Most voters still say members of Congress aren’t above selling their vote and think their own representative is likely to have done so.

-- Just 14% of Americans say they would ever consider having cosmetic plastic surgery to improve their appearance or make themselves look younger.

Visit the Rasmussen Reports home page for the latest current polling coverage of events in the news. The page is updated several times each day.

Remember, if it's in the news, it's in our polls.