Debate preview: Trump’s Goldilocks policies leave little room for his Republican debate opponents to OUTFLANK him on abortion, immigration or Social Security, according to exclusive poll

The voters who will make the first decision in the 2024 Republican nomination battle say Donald Trump’s policies on everything from abortion and immigration to gender ideology are “about right,” according to a new poll for DailyMail.com.

It shows the difficulties his opponents will face on Wednesday as they gather for the first debate of the race and try to get back at the absent front runner.

Only 13 percent think Trump is “too liberal” on abortion; nine percent think they are too liberal on immigration; and only six percent think they are too soft on Social Security.

It means rivals like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis or Senator Tim Scott have little room to outflank him on the right, even on issues where Trump takes a nontraditional stance for a conservative.

And it might explain why DeSantis has struggled to find traction with a campaign that emphasized a war on the awakening.

“Wednesday’s debate participants will have Trump in their sights — whether he’s there or not,” said James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners who conducted the poll.

One line of attack that we know candidates are looking for is attacking the former president from the right on issues like abortion, transgender people or social security. But Trump has a wall of defense against the voters.

His company surveyed 600 Republican caucus attendees in Iowa between August 2 and August 7.

The state is crucial to candidates’ chances and can make or break a campaign. It will be the first to pick a preferred candidate when the Republicans meet or host a “caucus” on Jan. 15.

“Overwhelmingly, Republican voters believe that Trump has the right approach to these issues — with only a very small number saying he is too liberal or too conservative on these issues,” Johnson said.

“Whether they come from the left or the right, the other candidates’ blows to Trump’s policy positions are unlikely to arrive.”

The results show a majority believe Trump’s positions are about right on five key issues.

His weakest area is ‘gender ideology’. About 16 percent think he is too liberal.

But on Social Security, only six percent thought Trump was too liberal. It suggests that it is people like DeSantis, who take the traditional conservative stance on cutting rights as part of a package of austerity, who are more vulnerable.

The results illustrate how Trump has managed to capture much of the Republican base.

And on a topic like abortion, his strategy of moving to the left, while expressing his conservative beliefs, is proving to be working.

He regularly reminds voters that he is responsible for appointing the three conservative Supreme Court justices who delivered the crucial votes to overturn Roe v Wade, which ended the constitutional right to abortion.

But at the same time, he has tried to avoid the issue during the Republican primary and has suggested Florida’s new six-week abortion ban was “too harsh.”

Polls for DailyMail.com show that this has given him an extraordinary lead among Republican women in key early states. In New Hampshire, he has a 26-point lead over DeSantis in women, compared to nine points in men.

He explained the approach at a Fox News town hall event when he said ideological purity was less important than winning an election.

“I happen to be from the Ronald Reagan school when it comes to waivers, where you have the mother’s life, rape and incest,” he told host Sean Hannity.

‘It works very well for me and probably 80, 85 percent, because don’t forget: we have to win elections.’

Former Vice President Mike Pence has already indicated that during the debate he intends to punch Trump for not supporting a federal abortion ban.

But the problems are only part of the problem for Trump’s challengers, said Larry Jacobs, director of the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance at the University of Minnesota.

He said Trump’s rejection of the political status quo and the Washington establishment was at the heart of his call.

“That’s a really tough, tough candidate for someone like DeSantis or a few others,” he said.

At the same time, he seemed to be in step with supporters in key policy areas, such as abortion.

You would think this is a problem Trump is going to wrestle with. Mike Pence tried to take advantage of that, but it didn’t work,” he said.

Trump has been careful with his language, despite what appears to be wild rhetoric at times. He’s showing a real facility with numbing areas where he might be out of step with the Republicans.”