Special Poll
Two new polls suggest that President Trump’s approval rating is slipping, signaling potential trouble for his administration.
A key factor behind the decline appears to be growing concern that Trump has overstepped his presidential authority in his efforts to reshape the federal government, with significant influence from tech billionaire Elon Musk. A slight majority of respondents in both surveys believe Trump has pushed executive power too far. While some of his most ambitious proposals, including a broad spending freeze, have been blocked in court, his administration has still managed to make a major impact with mass layoffs of federal workers, cuts to government contracts, and a flurry of executive orders.
These actions have not been well received, according to the polling. In a Washington Post survey, 58 percent of respondents opposed the large-scale layoffs of government employees. Musk’s role in the administration is also proving unpopular—just 34 percent of respondents in the Post poll approved of his influence in federal decision-making, while 54 percent in a CNN poll said Trump made a mistake by giving the SpaceX CEO such a prominent advisory role.
Beyond concerns about executive overreach, Americans remain unconvinced by Trump’s handling of inflation, a major issue for voters. In the CNN survey, 62 percent of respondents—including 47 percent of Republicans—felt the president has not done enough to bring down the cost of everyday goods.
Meanwhile, tariffs—one of Trump’s biggest economic policies—are not seen as a viable solution to rising prices. In the Post poll, 69 percent of respondents believed that tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China would make U.S. products more expensive, rather than helping domestic consumers.
Despite these warning signs, the White House remains defiant. Deputy Press Secretary Harrison Fields dismissed the polling results, arguing that the public remains optimistic about the administration’s direction. “Despite the doom and gloom headlines from news organizations like yours, the American people actually feel great about the direction of the country,” Fields said in a statement. “What’s to hate? We are undoing the widely unpopular agenda of the previous office holder, uprooting waste, fraud, and abuse, and chugging along on the great American Comeback.”
While the administration paints a positive picture, the polling suggests that Trump may face growing political challenges as he pushes forward with his agenda.