Some 60 percent of Americans surveyed say they oppose major new construction of a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border, a new Gallup poll shows. That’s roughly the same percentage of voters who opposed the wall in a similar poll in June, but opinions about the wall appear to be hardening: In last year’s poll, 34 percent said they strongly opposed it, while 39 percent say that now. Twenty-one percent said they just oppose it, making 60 percent of people polled against it in total. The current survey was conducted between Jan. 21-27, with nearly two-thirds of people being interviewed before President Trump ended the government shutdown over the matter. Although the wall is unpopular, the same poll showed that three-fourths of the public favors the hiring of “significantly more” Border Patrol agents. And the proportion of Americans wanting to increase immigration levels has grown—it was 21 percent in June 2016, but is now at a record-high of 30 percent.
