Donald Trump, if elected president, will use nuclear weapon: SurveyMonkey Poll

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump arrives on stage for a rally in Toledo, Ohio on September 21, 2016. (Photo by AFP)

A new poll shows that nearly half of all voters believe that US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, if elected president, would allow use of a nuclear weapon to wage war against terrorist groups.

According to a poll conducted and released by SurveyMonkey on Friday, nearly half of voters, making up 46 percent of the people surveyed, said the New York businessman as president would authorize the use of a nuclear weapon or a nuclear device to launch an attack on the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group (ISIL) and other foreign enemies.

The other 54 percent said a Trump presidency would lead to US defaulting on its external debt obligations.

“The American people believe we are a coin flip away from nuclear war or a default on our debt if Donald Trump is elected president,” said Andrew Weinstein, former adviser to US House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

“Even Trump’s own supporters believe there is a shockingly high risk of him unleashing a nuclear, financial, or constitutional catastrophe from the Oval Office. This survey shows that Americans see a Trump presidency as a game of Russian roulette, except there’s a bullet in every chamber,” he added.

Respondents also voiced other concerns, including Trump’s intention to create a database to track Muslims, establishment of internment camps for illegal immigrants and eruption of race riots in major US cities during his tenure as president.

"I've always believed that electing Trump creates unacceptable risks for America -- to our security, to our economy, and to our constitutional rights,” said James K. Glassman, former Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy.

“This survey confirms that tens of millions of Americans have these same fears. As they should," he noted.

The survey was conducted nationally on behalf of the Lincoln Leadership Initiative, among 1,051 registered voters and between September 16 and September 21, 2016. The poll enjoyed a 4 percentage point margin of error.

The New York businessman's campaign has been marred by his disparaging remarks against minorities in the US. His comments include a call to ban all Muslims from coming to America as well as forced deportation of Mexican migrants by building a long wall along the US-Mexico border.

He has also sought for a database to track Muslims across the United States and said that the US would have "absolutely no choice" but to close down mosques.

Trump’s proposal has been condemned by Muslim and human rights groups as well as his Democratic rivals and many of his Republican proponents who describe the proposal as divisive, counterproductive and contrary to American values.