Here are my observations on President Trump’s approval/disapproval ratings.
I have frequently mentioned how the so-called mainstream media generally ignores any good news about President Trump and his administration. News reports about the economy – record stock market highs, growth, jobs, unemployment and income improvements, and a rising consumer confidence are rare.
However, when Gallup or one of the other polling organizations release President Trump’s approval/disapproval ratings, it always makes news.
Despite low approval ratings, President Trump’s base continues to support him. (Charlie Neibergall, AP)
While a recent poll from Morning Consult and Politico found that he had a 45 percent approval rating and 51 percent disapproved of his performance, the average of the major polls reveals a 38 percent approval and 56 percent disapproval ratings.
The media gleefully report his low approval rating because they had a hand in generating it with their negative reporting; fake news if you will.
Trump’s disapproval rating is rooted in character concerns, according to Gallup. “Americans who disapprove of how Donald Trump is handling his job as president primarily base their views on his character and personality,” says Gallup,
The pollster points out that “Trump’s unique personal style, brashness and disregard for conventional norms and discourse during the campaign continues and remain prominent in the minds of his detractors. They are the most frequently cited reasons as to why the majority of Americans think he is not doing a good job.”
When asked why they disapprove of the way Trump is handling his job as president, respondents cite his temperament, arrogance, non-presidential actions, self-focus and inexperience. Disapproval ratings of his policies and broad performance issues are in the teens.
It is interesting to note that among those who approved of his handling of the job, he was given high marks for keeping his promises and doing what’s best for America, creating jobs, and his sound policies.
Unlike those who saw character flaws, a third of those who approved of his handling of the job gave him high marks for his strong backbone, leadership, anti-establishment and transparency positions under character and personality.
It is “abundantly clear that Trump’s unique style, flouting of convention and non-normative patterns of White House behavior are driving his high disapproval ratings among the American public, rather than disagreement with his policies or issue stances,” concludes Gallup.
Conceding that Trump is unlikely to change his behavior or style, Gallup assumes his approval/disapproval rating will remain fairly constant, “unless he manages to pull off dramatic domestic or international accomplishments that overshadow his behavior in the minds of his detractors.”
It’s important to remember why Trump was elected; voters wanted the change that an outsider could bring to Washington.
You can expect the left-leaning media, with its even lower approval rating, to continue to provide the president with Twitter ammunition as they fabricate news, label him as a racist and white supremacist, while shamelessly claiming his unfitness is due to the onset of dementia.
Here’s one of my early New Year’s resolutions: I will ignore President Trump’s approval/disapproval ratings.
