Economic growth is more important than protecting the environment to most Americans, according to a new Gallup poll.
By a margin of 49 to 41 percent, the economy comes first, just as it has for most Americans since 2009, Gallup notes.
According to Gallup, mainly "Young People, Democrats, and Liberals Prioritize Environment."
The polling firm reports:
For most of the last three decades, Americans have prioritized "the environment, even at the risk of curbing economic growth" over "economic growth … even if the environment suffers to some extent." Prior to 2001, about two-thirds of Americans routinely favored protecting the environment. Even as the recession and financial crisis were getting underway in early 2008, more Americans favored the environment than economic growth, by a seven-point margin.