Most Americans expect Trump to increase debt: Survey

A majority of Americans expect the national debt to rise under President-elect Donald Trump, according to a new Reuters/Ipsos survey conducted after the election.

The poll found that 62 percent of respondents said the returning president’s proposals “will push the U.S. national debt higher.” That includes 94 percent of Democrats and 34 percent of Republicans.

The poll was conducted online over two days, ending Thursday. Roughly 1,500 adults were surveyed across the country as part of the poll, which had a margin of error of 3 percentage points.

Another survey released by The Wall Street Journal before the election found that economists also expected higher inflation, national deficits and interest rates under Trump’s proposed agenda than under policies proposed by Vice President Harris.

The survey came amid ongoing debate between both sides of the aisle as to how much Trump’s proposed policies would add to the national debt in the coming years.

A rough analysis released by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimated the plans proposed by both Trump and Vice President Harris could increase the national debt by trillions of dollars through 2035 — though Trump’s agenda was still estimated to cost roughly twice as much as the policies put forward by his competitor.

Among the biggest line items highlighted by the group was an estimated $5.35 trillion price tag attached to Trump’s proposals to extend and modify parts of his signature 2017 tax law.

However, the Trump campaign and other Republicans have pushed back on the findings, while defending the president-elect’s tax proposals as pro-growth policies that will help boost revenue and good for the economy.

In the latest survey from Reuters, more Democrats, or 89 percent, said they were “concerned by the prospect of Trump pushing the debt higher.” Only 19 percent of Republicans said the same.