President Trump’s Poll Numbers Are Bringing the GOP Down

By Jared McNett  |  April 17, 2017 | 3:35pm
Photos by Pool/Getty, Mark Wilson/Getty
Politics News Donald Trump
President Trump’s Poll Numbers Are Bringing the GOP Down

President Donald Trump’s new poll numbers aren’t exactly “yuge,” though they aren’t quite “Sad!” either. Instead, the latest Pew Research Center survey, released today, finds that the president’s overall job rating continues to stall at a pedestrian 39 percent.

That number isn’t exactly great for a president who is only in his third month in office, but the survey has a number that’s perhaps even worse news for the administration and for the Republican Party: 40 percent. That particular number represents the current approval rating for Republicans, and is a seven percent drop from the number back in January.

In addition to that drop, Americans also see the Republican Party as less equipped than the Democratic Party to deal with: government spending, immigration, foreign policy, education, health care, abortion and the environment. There are only five issues that Americans trust Republicans over Democrats on, and only one of those, terrorism, has a double-digit gap. The other four—gun policy, economy, trade and taxes—have a five-percent gap or less.

Not surprisingly, Paul Ryan’s approval rating as Speaker of the House is taking a bath and is currently washed out at 29 percent. In fact, only half of Republicans and those who lean Republican are willing to give Ryan positive marks in the Pew poll. Ryan’s drop has accompanied his failure (as of now) to deliver on his promise to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Since that issue is dead for now, it’s possible Ryan’s numbers will start stalling like Trump’s, unless both get dragged down by further GOP disapproval.

While this new survey would seem like good news for Democrats, it’s not. The favorability rating for Democrats has dropped from 51 percent to 45 percent, and less than half of respondents believe the party has “high ethical standards” (the number is 49 percent for Dems and 41 percent for Republicans).

So while the GOP drop-off seems beneficial to Democrats, it won’t really be unless the party unites around the issues it has trust on and delivers more cogent opposition to a Republican-dominated federal government.

To read the full Pew Report, head here now.

 
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