Weekly political update – Where news & perceptions meet reality
Bottom Line: This is your weekly reality check. What's really going on with public opinion of the president and our view of the direction of the country? Here it is...
- Trump's lowest rating: 37% approval (8/4/17)
- Trump highest approval rating: 45% approval (6/7/19)
- Trump's current rating: 43% approval
President Trump’s rating is now off two points in two weeks. It might be safe to say that the recent Twitter controversies he kicked off by teeing off on the Squad and Baltimore haven’t done him any favors generally. Not that two points is anything that’s a dramatic shift at this point but it’s this type of activity that could matter if we have close elections next fall. Notably the decline has come among registered voters. It’d be less effectual if it were just general adult sampling but it’s not. Again, nothing worth overreacting to but worth watching.
Presidential election cycles with incumbent presidents running for re-election are mostly a referendum on their performance. Based on President Trump’s performance on the economy his approval ratings would/should ordinarily be well north of 50%. That it’s not shows you the difference based on his personality. I’m wondering if there aren’t some people that would be willing to vote for him again today based on policy that say they don’t approve of his performance because they don’t care for the way he conducts himself.
It’s been the case throughout his term thus far, that the more informed and engaged someone is politically, the more likely they are to approve of President Trump. That remains the case once again this week.
- Adult only samples averaged: N/A
- Registered voters: 42%
- Likely voters: 48%
What you never hear reported are the ratings of the Democratic leaders opposing him. Let’s just say they’d need a huge push of support to simply catch President Trump’s approval ratings. Here’s the latest...
- Pelosi: 35%
- Schumer: 28%
What does that tell you about what’s really going on in this country? Pelosi trails President Trump’s approval by eight points, tying her record low rating and Schumer by 15. It’s not exactly as though people are picking up what they’re putting down.
Looking at the direction of the country this week...
Where we stood on Inauguration Day:
- Right Direction: 30%
Today:
- Right Direction: 38%
Overall, we’re 8% collectively more optimistic than we were during the Obama administration.