A recent survey indicates a decrease in public trust regarding President Donald Trump’s management of the economy.
A Reuters/Ipsos poll carried out from February 12 to 18 revealed that 53 percent of Americans felt the economy was heading in the wrong direction, an increase from 43 percent in the organization’s poll conducted between January 24 and 26.
Why It Matters
Prior polling indicated that the economy was the key issue for voters in the 2024 election, with many supporting Trump, who was inaugurated last month, in hopes that he would deliver on his promise to reduce inflation and rejuvenate U.S. trade and industry.
However, the U.S. economy has faced numerous challenges in recent years as the nation grapples with the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic, and recent figures show a rise in prices.
AP
What To Know
Support for Trump’s economic management also declined to 39 percent in February, down from 43 percent in January. The recent Reuters/Ipsos poll found that just 32 percent of respondents approved of Trump’s actions regarding inflation.
In February 2017, during his first full month in office, polling by Reuters/Ipsos indicated his economic rating was at 53 percent.
This latest poll could signal troubling news for Trump, who promised during his campaign that inflation would “disappear entirely” upon his return to the White House.
A Labor Department report revealed that in January, consumer prices experienced their most significant increase in nearly 18 months, as Americans faced climbing costs for various goods and services. Additional data suggests that U.S. households anticipate rising inflation due to Trump’s February 1 announcement concerning tariffs of up to 25 percent on goods from Mexico and Canada, along with a 10 percent tariff on imports from China.
Prior analyses from Goldman Sachs estimated that the implementation of these tariffs would result in a 1 percent increase in consumer price inflation. They would also reduce profit margins for U.S. businesses and escalate the potential for retaliatory tariffs from other nations, the bank projected.
Nevertheless, the Reuters/Ipsos poll showed that American sentiment was divided about the tariffs, with 54 percent of respondents opposing new tariffs on imported goods, while 41 percent were supportive. Support for increasing tariffs on Chinese goods was slightly better, with 49 percent in favor and 47 percent against.
The poll surveyed 4,145 U.S. adults nationwide and carried a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.
Trump’s Approval Rating
The Reuters/Ipsos poll indicated that Trump’s overall approval rating dipped marginally to 44 percent, down from 45 percent in the January 24 to 26 poll and 47 percent in the January 20 to 21 survey.
The poll also showed that 51 percent of respondents disapproved of his presidency, rising from 41 percent right after he assumed office.
However, other polls suggest that the president is enjoying greater popularity than ever. For instance, a poll conducted by Emerson College from January 27 to 28 showed Trump’s approval rating at 49 percent, with 41 percent disapproving. This poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
This represents an uptick for Trump compared to his first term, during which Emerson College polling indicated his approval rating peaked at 48 percent in August 2020.
Trump’s favorability ratings have also recently reached historic highs, according to 538’s tracker, which shows his net favorability rating at -1.6, up from a low of -18 in February 2021.
According to the latest Gallup poll, Trump holds the record for the lowest approval rating of any elected president since 1953, as he started his term with sub-50 percent approval.
Other surveys show a significant level of public support for Trump’s immigration policies, which include increasing deportations and plans to build facilities at Guantanamo Bay for housing illegal immigrants. The Reuters/Ipsos poll found that 47 percent of respondents approved of Trump’s approach to immigration, marking little change from January.
Additionally, another poll conducted by The New York Times and Ipsos between January 2 and 10 found that 55 percent of voters supported Trump’s mass deportation initiative, while 88 percent endorsed the deportation of undocumented immigrants with criminal records. A majority of both Democrats and Republicans concurred that the immigration system is in disarray.
What People Are Saying
Thomas Gift, an associate professor of political science and director of the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London, shared with Newsweek: “Americans are coming to grips with the reality that there’s no magic solution for inflation. While several of Joe Biden’s stimulus packages may have overheated the economy and arguably exacerbated the cost-of-living crisis, many inflationary factors are structural and tied to supply chains and cannot be rectified overnight. Additionally, it’s difficult to identify policies that would be more inflationary than mass deportations and tariffs, which Trump has made central to his platform. The notion that electing Trump would abruptly lower the cost of basic necessities was always far-fetched. It seems that some voters are beginning to acknowledge this challenging reality.”
President Donald Trump stated at the World Economic Forum on January 23: “My administration is working with unprecedented speed to address the crises we’ve inherited from a completely incompetent group of people and to resolve each crisis confronting our country. This begins with tackling the economic turmoil created by the failed policies of the previous administration.
“Over the past four years, our government accumulated $8 trillion in unnecessary deficit spending and imposed crippling energy restrictions, stifling regulations, and unprecedented hidden taxes. The result is the worst inflation crisis in modern history and exorbitant interest rates for our citizens and globally. The prices of food and nearly every other commodity have skyrocketed.”
What Happens Next
The implications of Trump’s extensive economic strategies, including tax cuts and elevated tariffs on major trading partners, are anticipated to become clearer in the months ahead.
