Most Americans don't trust Trump. Even his own AI chatbot calls him a liar.
A pair of new national polls gave Donald Trump the kind of data no president wants to see.
Just 31% of Americans find Trump trustworthy, a new low for him and down from 38% at the start of his second term in January, according to an Aug. 12 Economist/YouGov survey.
And a Pew Research Center survey released Aug. 14 showed that just 38% of Americans approve of Trump's performance as president, with significant majorities disapproving of his signature "One Big Beautiful Bill," his approach to tariffs and changes he has made to the federal government.
Americans dislike just about everything Trump brags about. And the more he touts what he sees as major accomplishments, the less America likes them – and him.
Anyone who has spent any time watching Trump – I've been writing about him since he was a bankrupt casino operator 20 years ago – knows that he embraces any polling that shows him doing well and derides surveys that show his weaknesses.
That's his way. Trump exists in a bubble where he is always outstanding and his critics are always wrong. And that's not just in his head. Trump has his own social media platform, Truth Social, where loyal supporters embrace every claim he makes, no matter how dodgy or easily disproven.
Trump's own chatbot knows he's a liar
So, before we dive into the reputable national polling, I thought it would be helpful to see what the new artificial intelligence chatbot Trump added to Truth Social on Aug. 6 had to say about whether he is trustworthy and whether his signature policies are popular.
Truth Social AI, the chatbot, offered me answers that echoed opinions from the new national polling and responded this way when I asked if Trump has a history of lying: "Yes. Major fact-checkers, courts, and official investigations have documented numerous false claims by Donald Trump over many years."
So Trump's own chatbot calls him out as a liar. How awkward for him. How candid and correct for the rest of us.
On the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Truth Social AI told me that "most national polling shows Americans disapprove" of it, though some people approve of "specific provisions" such as some tax breaks included in it.
On tariffs, Truth Social AI said, "Most credible analyses find Trump's tariffs have been a net drag on the U.S. economy ‒ raising consumer and business costs, reducing overall employment and output ‒ though they can modestly lift employment in some protected manufacturing industries."
Asked about how Trump is changing the federal government, Truth Social told me "approval is mixed and modest," citing Associated Press-NORC polls showing "roughly 4 in 10 Americans approve." That was interesting framing, since a clear majority in those polls don't like how Trump is operating.
Trump's approval numbers aren't anything to celebrate
That disapproval is reflected on websites that keep averages of recent polling about Trump.
RealClearPolling listed him with a 51.5% disapproval rating on Aug. 14. CNN's Poll of Polls put Trump's disapproval rating at 56% that day. Decision Desk HQ logged Trump's disapproval rating at 52%.
Trump, living in his bubble, posted on Truth Social on Aug. 13 that he is the "highest polling Republican President in HISTORY!"
Truth Social AI disputed that, telling me that "by historical standards, Donald Trump's national job-approval is not the highest of any Republican president."
So you can see why the Economist/YouGov poll ranked Americans' disapproval of Trump's performance at 54%. Along with finding a majority see him as dishonest, the poll also showed 48% of the respondents think the American economy is getting worse, while just 24% see it as getting better. The same number, 48%, said they expect higher inflation, while just 17% expect it to decrease.
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The Pew Research Center survey offers some insight into American pessimism about our economy, with 61% disapproving of Trump's tariff wars and 38% approving. On the One Big Beautiful Bill, 46% disapproved, while 32% approved and 23% were not sure.
Fifty-three percent said Trump is making the federal government work worse, while just 27% said it works better now, and 20% said it works about the same as before. And here we find some rare bipartisanship – 55% of Republicans say it is worse now, not as high as 87% of Democrats, but still a clear GOP majority.
This survey hits Trump harder on honesty. "Most Americans also distrust what the administration is saying about the Epstein issue," Pew reports, "63% say they have little or no trust in what the administration is saying."
Opinion newsletter: Sign up for our newsletter on people, power and policies in the time of Trump from columnist Chris Brennan. Get it delivered to your inbox.
As politicians love to say, polls are a snapshot in time. This is not a pretty picture for Trump. But he could turn things around. Or he could make things worse. The trend for the president, now seven months into his second term, leans away from a turnaround and toward a worsening.
Trump still has plenty of supporters eager to accept his claims and to castigate his critics. I'd ask them this – why would Trump's social media platform, which he controls as the largest stockholder, offer answers that echo American concerns about his dishonesty and economic policies if they were not bang-on accurate?
Don't take my word for it. Go ask Truth Social AI yourself, while it is still delivering accurate answers to important questions.
Follow USA TODAY columnist Chris Brennan on X, formerly known as Twitter: @ByChrisBrennan. Sign up for his weekly newsletter, Translating Politics, here.
You can read diverse opinions from our USA TODAY columnists and other writers on the Opinion front page, on X, formerly Twitter, @usatodayopinion and in our Opinion newsletter.
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