Frank Luntz’s Focus Group Highlights Divisions Over Trump: ‘There’s No Listening Anymore’
Photo Credit: : James Devaney / Getty Images
Republican pollster Frank Luntz showcased footage from a heated focus group on CNN’s OutFront that revealed deep divisions between supporters and opponents of former President Donald Trump, according to Mediaite. During Friday’s episode, guest host Erica Hill aired clips of the intense debate, where participants expressed contrasting views about Trump and former President Barack Obama.
One participant passionately remarked, “How condescending was Obama? I couldn’t stand to watch that guy. He just looked down on top of everybody! Trump will get down in the dirt and work with you.” This comment sparked a swift response from another group member, who said, “So, you want respect, but you have a president who takes on women, minorities, everything but White males.”
Defending Trump, the first person shot back, “And you know what? He won the election! And he won! And you guys can’t handle that!” Another participant then added, “I don’t know why he’s racist. You’d have to ask him… Because he sits up and says all those Mexicans are rapists and murderers.”
Following the video, Hill asked Luntz what insights he’s gaining from these focus groups. Luntz observed, “There’s no censorship, that we now say what we think. We say what we want people to hear rather than trying to learn.” When Hill pressed further, asking if participants are willing to listen, Luntz responded, “No, they don’t wanna listen. They don’t wanna learn. And my issue in this is, children are watching. Our kids are watching this and they’re learning model behavior.”
Luntz expressed his dismay over the conduct he’s observed at school board meetings across the country. “The school boards are the worst. Parents go there and they threaten the people on the school board,” he said, lamenting that police are now required at such gatherings. “What is wrong with this country that we’ve gone that far?”
Meanwhile, in a separate development, Donald Trump faced frustration just days into his criminal trial, according to NBC News. After hearing numerous New Yorkers express unfavorable opinions about him and being constrained by courtroom rules, Trump voiced his displeasure to reporters on Friday, stating, “Instead of being in Pennsylvania or Georgia, or North Carolina… I’m sitting in a courthouse all day long.”
The former president, who is on trial for alleged hush money payments linked to the 2016 election, accused prosecutors of attempting to interfere in the 2024 election to benefit President Joe Biden. The trial is expected to last several more weeks, keeping Trump in court and away from the campaign trail. Outside the courthouse, tensions were high, as a man set himself on fire in a nearby park, adding to the chaotic atmosphere surrounding Trump’s legal battles.
