Trump's approval with Republican voters rose by 5% after his racist tweets

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

• President Donald Trump's approval rating with GOP voters rose after his racist tweets on Sunday attacking four Democratic lawmakers who are women of color.
• Trump's net approval with GOP voters rose 5% from a similar poll conducted last week and now rests at 72%, according to the poll, which was conducted on Monday and Tuesday.
• Trump has fiercely defended the tweets, which were aimed at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts.
• Trump, who is running for re-election in 2020, also saw his approval drop with Democratic voters and independents after his tweets.

When President Donald Trump was asked by a reporter on Monday if he was concerned that his tweets attacking four Democratic lawmakers were widely viewed as racist, the president said no because "many people agree with me."

It appears he may have been correct.

A national survey conducted by Reuters/Ipsos on Monday and Tuesday - following Trump's racist tweets on Sunday - found that his approval rating went up with Republican voters.

After Trump's tweets, his net approval with GOP voters rose 5% from a similar poll conducted last week and now rests at 72%.

On the other hand, Trump's approval dropped with Democratic voters and independents after his tweets. The poll found that about 30% of independents support Trump, dropping from roughly 40% last week. Meanwhile, Trump's net approval with Democrats dropped by 2 points in the poll.

The poll found that Trump's approval rating overall remains unchanged since last week, with 41% of the US public approving of his performance in office and 55% disapproving.

Read more: Republican silence on Trump's racist tweets shows how fearful they've become of defying him and losing voters

Trump in his tweets told the lawmakers, who are women of color and US citizens, that they should "go back and help fix the totally broken and crime infested places from which they came." His tweets played off of the racist "go back to Africa" trope.

The president's demeaning tweets have prompted outrage across the country and led to condemnation from world leaders. A resolution condemning Trump's tweets passed in the House on Tuesday with every single Democratic member voting in favor of it. Democrats were joined by just four Republican lawmakers in passing the resolution.

The GOP has remained overwhelmingly silent on the subject of Trump's tweets, and Republican leaders have rejected the notion they were racist.

Trump has fiercely defended the tweets, which were aimed at Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts. The president on Tuesday said the tweets weren't racist and that he doesn't have a "racist bone" in his body.

A separate USA Today/Ipsos poll found that 58% of Americans felt Trump's tweets were "un-American."