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: 46% approval (9/19/19)
- Trump's current rating: 44% approval
As the Impeachment hearing kicked off this week President Trump sits only 2% off of his all-time high average approval rating, albeit 1% lower than a week ago. With the clear failure of Wednesday’s impeachment hearing for Democrats, President Trump is poised for upside heading towards year end against the backdrop of the great economy if there’s backlash against Democrats for pulling this impeachment lever.
Even in the middle of this three-year effort to impeach President Trump, his average approval rating is only one point lower than President Obama’s on the same date. 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: N/A
- Registered voters: 43%
- Likely voters: 48%
What you never hear reported are the ratings of the Democratic leaders opposing him. Here’s the latest...
- Pelosi: 38%
- Schumer: 29%
Both Pelosi and Schumer are up a point this week, just as President Trump was off a point this week. We’ve actually seen this seeming direct connection between the three over the past two months – especially from the starting of the impeachment inquiry process. The flip side of that conversation is that those pushing the impeachment remain far less popular than the person they’re attempting to impeach. The next week should be interesting to watch. These ratings don’t reflect what’s happened since Wednesday’s hearing.
Looking at the direction of the country this week...
Where we stood on Inauguration Day:
- Right Direction: 30%
Today:
- Right Direction: 35%
Overall, even in the mist of impeachment palooza 2019, we’re 5% collectively more optimistic than we were during the Obama administration.