Donald Trump Is A Frightening Presidential Candidate For Most American Voters

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has some good news and some bad news in the newest New York Times/CBS News nationwide poll. The good news for Trump: He is registering his highest level of support so far in the 2016 presidential race. The bad? Voters think he’s scary.

Nearly two-thirds of the polled American voters say that they are concerned or frightened by the prospect of a Trump presidency. The survey was largely conducted before the billionaire’s recent announcement that he would temporarily ban all Muslims from entering the country until lawmakers sufficiently understand the threat posed by radical Islam. Respondents also indicated that Trump’s potential rival, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, is only a slightly better presidential prospect to voters.

Trump received 35 percent support from Republican primary voters, placing him way above the rest of the candidates. His closest competitor, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, registered 16 percent of the vote and third-place retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson has dropped to 13 percent. Carson’s support is about half of what it was when the same poll was conducted in late October, while Cruz’s support has quadrupled. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s support remained stagnant at 9 percent, and every other candidate received 4 percent of the vote or less.

Following Trump’s remarks on Muslims, he received widespread criticism from politicians, pundits and average voters on both sides of the ideological divide. His Republican rivals spoke out against his comments, as did House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and the Democrats in the presidential race.

Of course, Trump is no stranger to controversial remarks. During his presidential candidacy alone, he has called Mexicans rapists and criminals, has mimicked a disabled person during a campaign rally, has insulted several women and called Iowans stupid after polls showed that Carson was surging in popularity in the state.