Border security surges to the front of the public’s attention

NEWS AND OPINION:

The public appears to be monitoring the unsettling and ongoing disarray at the southern U.S. border as illegal immigration and porous borders continue to make headlines.

“Significantly more Americans name immigration as the most important problem facing the U.S. (28%) than did a month ago (20%). Immigration has now passed the government as the most often cited problem, after the two issues tied for the top position the past two months. The government ranked first each month from January through November 2023,” wrote Jeffrey M. Jones, senior editor for Gallup.

“In the latest poll, 20% of Americans name the government as the most important problem, followed by the economy (12%) and inflation (11%). Immigration is the only issue that has shown meaningful change in the past month,” he wrote.

The public has had concerns about immigration in previous years.

“The latest results are based on a Feb. 1-20 Gallup survey. Immigration has ranked ahead of all other issues as the most important problem before, having last done so five years ago when there was a surge of attempted border crossings by Central American migrants. Immigration also ranked as the No. 1 problem in July and November 2018, and July 2014,” Mr. Jones said.

TAKING NOTICE

“Immigration is Americans’ top concern as backlash swells over extreme Democrats’ open-border policies, new polling finds,” the National Republican Congressional Committee said in a written statement.

The organization is citing the aforementioned findings from Gallup.

“Cops beaten, a college student murdered, Chinese foreign nationals flowing across the border, city budgets crunched and fentanyl killing Americans every day, no wonder families are scared to death of extreme Democrats’ open-border policies,” said Will Reinert, national press secretary for the committee, also in a written statement.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is a political committee devoted to increasing the number of Republicans in the  House of Representatives, according to its mission statement.

NEWT ON THE RADAR

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has endorsed Catherine Templeton in South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District.

As endorsements go, one from such a longtime Republican icon could prove helpful indeed.

“I’m honored to endorse Catherine Templeton for Congress. Catherine has a conservative record that is serious and consistent. Catherine will make you proud because she’s tough on securing the border, she’s pro-life and pro-gun, and she’s actually done something - creating good-paying American jobs as the founder of US Brick. Catherine will be a leader for the America First agenda in President Trump’s second term and she will make South Carolina proud,” Mr. Gingrich said.

Ms. Templeton noted in reply that she is “proud to have Speaker Gingrich’s support.”

“With 10,000 illegal immigrants a day crossing our border, we need a leader laser-focused on protecting our country. The Lowcountry deserves a consistent conservative who will prioritize standing up for our values over whatever it takes to get on TV. Speaker Gingrich achieved serious results by standing up to the DC Establishment. I am proud that he knows I will do the same,” she said.

FOXIFIED

Fox News continues to dominate the cable news realm, now marking 37 straight months besting the competition in prime time, and 36 months as the leader in daytime viewing. Fox News also aired 96 of the top 100 cable news telecasts in February, according to Nielsen Media Research.

In prime time, Fox News enjoyed an average audience of 2 million viewers; rivals MSNBC attracted 1.3 million and CNN 601,000. In daytime viewing hours, Fox News drew 1.3 million, compared with MSNBC with 852,000 and CNN 479,000,

“The Five,” which has been the number one show in cable news for over two years, continued its winning streak, securing an average daily audience of 3.1 million.

With an average daily viewing audience of 2.2 million, late-night funnyman Greg Gutfeld continues to best network rivals “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “Late Night With Seth Meyers” and “After Midnight.”

“Jesse Watters Primetime” continues to draw a noteworthy audience of 2.8 million viewers, followed by “Hannity” (2.4 million), “The Ingraham Angle” (2.3 million) and “Special Report” (2.2 million).

Fox Business Network, meanwhile, closed out the month of February with “Kudlow” and “Varney & Co.” dominating the business news coverage. They were the top two business programs for the 24th straight month, according to Nielsen. The network also aired four of the top 10 programs on business television, also including “The Claman Countdown” and “The Evening Edit.”

IVY-COVERED HALLS

Well, maybe they can just forget those cheerful handwritten greetings, interesting photos and holiday-themed doodads that typically appear throughout the year.

Students at Barnard College have until Wednesday to remove all decorations on the doors of their dorm rooms — or else school officials will take them down for them.

“The reason: Barnard doesn’t want students to ‘isolate those who have different views and beliefs.’ The policy pertains to dry-erase boards, decorations, or messaging,” according to TheCollegeFix.com, a student-written investigative news website.

“Students can request an exemption for ‘religious or other reasons’ by contacting Barnard’s Residential Life and Housing,” the report said.

POLL DU JOUR

• 61% of U.S. adults think that the issue of illegal immigration is a “very serious” problem for the U.S.; 91% of Republicans, 58% of independents and 41% of Democrats agree.

• 23% think illegal immigration is a “somewhat serious” problem for the U.S.; 4% of Republicans, 25% of independents and 37% of Democrats agree.

• 10% think illegal immigration is a “not too serious” problem; 3% of Republicans, 12% of independents and 14% of Democrats agree.

• 5% think ideal immigration is a “not at all serious” problem; 0% of Republicans, 5% of independents and 8% of Democrats agree.

• 1% don’t know; 2% of Republicans, 0% of independents and 0% of Democrats agree.

SOURCE: A Monmouth University poll of 902 U.S. adults conducted Feb. 8-12.

• Follow Jennifer Harper on X @HarperBulletin, on Facebook @HarperUniverse.