(AFP) – US President Donald Trump hit out Monday at “fake polls” showing dismal approval ratings for the Republican less than 100 days after returning to the White House. A Washington Post-ABC News survey last week revealed just 39 percent of Americans approved of Trump’s job performance, while a New York Times poll put that figure at 42 percent. More than 40 percent of Americans “disapprove strongly” of Trump, The Post found.
“Great Pollster John McLaughlin, one of the most highly respected in the industry, has just stated that The Failing New York Times Poll, and the ABC/Washington Post Poll…are FAKE POLLS FROM FAKE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform. McLaughlin is a close supporter of the president and a Republican researcher who has consistently published survey results favorable to Trump.
The president, who has long seen the mainstream press as an enemy, accused pollsters and news organizations of suffering from “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” “These people should be investigated for ELECTION FRAUD, and add in the FoxNews Pollster while you’re at it,” he said.
With the exception of Bill Clinton and now Trump, US presidents dating back to Ronald Reagan have had an approval rating topping 50 percent after their first 100 days in office, according to the Pew Research Center. Trump has come racing out of the gates in his second term in office, slashing government agencies, launching trade wars with friends and foes alike, and even taking on the judiciary over his immigration crackdown.
While the opinion polls reflect a growing mistrust of White House economic policy, the pessimism appears yet to reach Trump’s core base of supporters, whose adulation of the president largely has remained strong through thick and thin. Polls have pointed out that the low ratings for Trump, ever the divider who plays to his strengths, are essentially on par with those in 2017, at the same time in his first term.
In today’s hyper-divided political America, 70 percent of Republican voters and Republican-leaning independents still support Trump’s tariff hikes, while 90 percent of Democrats oppose them, according to Pew.
© 2024 AFP
