Trump Approval Slips as Support for Policies Falls, New Poll Finds
A new Pew survey shows declining approval and policy support for Donald Trump, with confidence dropping across key leadership traits and Republican backing softening.
Public confidence in President Donald Trump has declined one year into his second administration, with fewer Americans supporting his policies and a growing share expressing doubts about his leadership, according to a new national survey.
Trump’s approval rating now stands at 37%, down from 40% in the fall. Half of Americans say his administration’s actions have been worse than expected, while just over one in five say they have been better than anticipated.
Support for Trump’s policy agenda has also weakened. Only 27% of Americans say they back all or most of his plans, down from 35% when he returned to office. A majority now say they support few or none of his policies. The decline in support has occurred entirely among Republicans, while Democratic support remains minimal.
The survey also finds widespread skepticism about Trump’s ability to fulfill key presidential responsibilities. Across six leadership traits measured, more Americans report low confidence than high confidence in his performance.
Roughly one-third of Americans express strong confidence in Trump’s leadership abilities, while about half say they lack confidence in his mental and physical fitness for office. Even fewer say they trust him to respect democratic values or select effective advisers.
Confidence in Trump’s ethical conduct is particularly low. Only 21% of Americans say they are highly confident he acts ethically in office, while 60% express little or no confidence. Republican confidence in Trump’s ethics has declined notably since the start of his term.
The shift in attitudes is also reshaping views within the Republican Party about loyalty to the president. A majority of Republican and Republican-leaning voters now say GOP members of Congress are not obligated to support Trump if they disagree with his policies.
Meanwhile, Democratic voters increasingly want their party’s leaders in Congress to take a more confrontational stance toward the administration.
The findings suggest that while partisan divisions remain strong, Trump’s standing has weakened across several key measures of public trust, including among segments of his own political base.
