Donald Trump has blunt response after eye-opening new approval ratings show what US really thinks of him
Donald Trump’s approval ratings have been steadily dropping for the past five months, and a new set of polls shows that many Americans are unhappy with how he’s doing as president in his second term. Despite this, Trump is insisting everything is fine.
Since starting his second term, Trump has made several big moves that have drawn criticism and sparked protests, especially his strict immigration policies, which led to demonstrations in cities like Los Angeles. He’s also pushed for higher tariffs and tried to reduce the influence of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs—moves that haven’t been well-received by a large part of the country.
A recent poll from Quinnipiac University, released on June 11, showed that only 38 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s performance as president. That’s one of the lowest approval ratings in modern U.S. history. People were asked about their opinions on topics like the economy, immigration, the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, Trump’s past friendship with Elon Musk, and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk once led. The results weren’t good for Trump across the board.
Even though the numbers are clearly dropping, Trump responded by claiming the exact opposite. On his Truth Social account, he posted a message saying, “Great Poll Numbers For Trump!” He also shared a different poll from InsiderAdvantage that showed him with a +10 approval rating, but critics say that could be cherry-picking just one favorable result while ignoring the rest.
In the Quinnipiac poll, only 38 percent of people approved of how Trump is handling trade, and just 43 percent supported his immigration policies, even though that’s usually one of his stronger areas. His handling of the Ukraine-Russia war received even lower marks, with just 34 percent approval. A polling expert, Tim Malloy, said the numbers suggest Americans are tired of how Trump is dealing with that conflict.
The poll also looked at how people feel about Elon Musk’s connection to Trump’s administration. Malloy pointed out that while Musk has lost some popularity among Republicans, many of them still support him and the work of DOGE, the department he led.
Another poll, done by Harvard CAPS/Harris and released on June 16, showed Trump’s overall approval rating had dropped again—this time by one percentage point from 47 to 46 percent. That marks five straight months of decline. He’s still holding on to strong support from certain groups, especially Republican voters, men, white Americans aged 25 to 44, and people in rural areas. Among all the issues, his highest approval remains in immigration, where 49 percent of people still back him.
Overall, while Trump is trying to spin the situation as positive, the majority of national polling shows that public opinion is moving against him, and more and more Americans are losing confidence in his leadership.
