Americans now view President Trump’s term as a success as he makes another run for the White House, while President Biden’s approval rating stays stubbornly low for the candidate. Inflation, the war in the Middle East, and his student loan forgiveness program are driving some of that disapproval.
According to a CNN poll released on Sunday, Mr. Biden’s approval rating is stuck at just 40 percent, while his disapproval rating is at 60 percent. It is a slight improvement from November 2023, when just 38 percent approved and 62 percent disapproved, however.
Mr. Trump does not have much more support, but voters now view his term itself as a success. Though only 37 percent of voters have a favorable view of Mr. Trump and 53 percent have an unfavorable view, a majority of voters say he performed well as president.
According to the CNN poll, 55 percent of Americans see Mr. Trump’s term as “a success” while just 44 percent believed it was “a failure.” The same poll found in January 2021 that just 41 percent of voters viewed the Trump administration as successful and 55 percent believed it was a failure.
In a head-to-head race, according to the poll, Mr. Trump beats Mr. Biden, 49 percent to 43 percent.
On the issues, the sitting president’s policies are not impressing voters. Only 45 percent approve of his health care policies, 44 percent approve of his student loan forgiveness program, and 29 percent approve of his handling of inflation.
The Federal Reserve has so far refused to cut interest rates because inflation has not yet met its two percent target. On April 10, Mr. Biden predicted the Fed would cut rates despite the stubborn inflation numbers. “I do stand by my prediction that, before the year is out, there’ll be a rate cut,” he said during a joint press conference with Japan’s prime minister, Fumio Kishida.
In a matter of weeks, voters have soured even further on his handling of the war between Israel and Hamas, as university protests take hold and students occupy campuses across the country.
At Columbia University, students are refusing to leave the green until the school’s administration discloses all of its investments in Israel and divests from any company that has any ties to the country. Protests in Georgia led to the arrests of several university professors, and hundreds of demonstrators were detained by Texas State Police during a protest at the University of Texas at Austin Saturday.
Beyond the protests, voters overwhelmingly disapprove of how Mr. Biden is handling the war itself. Just 28 percent approve of Mr. Biden’s job performance on that issue, while 71 percent disapprove. In January, 34 percent approved and 71 percent disapproved.
In their own lives, voters say they are worse off today than they were even one year ago. Today, 53 percent of Americans say they are dissatisfied with their “personal financial situation,” and 47 percent say they are satisfied.
Voters may also be turning to Mr. Trump’s more “America First” vision of foreign policy, with majorities now saying that America has no responsibility to be involved in wars in the Middle East. Today, just 41 percent say America should be involved in these conflicts while 59 percent say America should have no role.
In 2019, when Mr. Trump moved American soldiers from Syria, Americans believed that the military should stay in order to help stabilize the conflict. At the time, 51 percent said America had a “responsibility” to be involved.
The painfully low approval numbers for Mr. Biden put him in a dangerous position as he runs for reelection. According to a Gallup poll released on Friday, he is now the least popular president at this point in his term in over 70 years.
The survey from Gallup shows a support level of just 38 percent. Presidents Carter and George H.W. Bush, as well as Mr. Trump, all had higher approval ratings at this point, and all went on to lose reelection. Mr. Carter had a 47 percent approval rating, Bush a 51 percent approval rating, and Mr. Trump a 46 percent approval rating.
