2017 US Politics - Americans Remain Pessimistic About the Current State of the Country (April 26)
Listen to The Point Being, a podcast from the Ipsos Polling Team, where Chris Jackson discusses this week’s numbers.
In the final week of President Trump’s first 100 days, Americans remain pessimistic about the current state of the country. Over half of Americans (55%) still believe the country is on the wrong track, with less than a third believing we are heading in the right direction (29%). The divide is down party lines, with nearly 8 in 10 Democrats (78%) believing we’re on the wrong track as opposed to 56% of Republicans who believe we’re heading in the right direction.
Despite a strong media push around the productivity of his first 100 days, President Trump’s job approval is at the lowest it’s been since he took office (41%). His approval is especially low on some key issues, including taxation where he has only 40% approval - though this number will likely change depending on his recently released tax plan. His handling of the environment (35%), corruption (38%) and dealing with Congress (41%) are similarly low. On the other hand, some of his positions are more well-received: he has maintained his highest approval on dealing with ISIS/ISIL (52%), employment and jobs (50%), and the US economy (47%).
With an increase in global terror attacks, concern over terrorism has grown to be a top priority among Americans, now at 15%. Close behind, the economy (12%) and healthcare (13%) are also on Americans’ minds as major priorities. Democrats are most concerned about healthcare (16%), likely because the Trump administration is still pursuing healthcare reform.
These are findings from an Ipsos poll conducted for Thomson Reuters April 21025, 2017 For the survey, a sample of 2,165 Americans, ages 18+ were interviewed online.
