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Business Standard
2 hours ago
- Business Standard
PM Modi tops global approval rankings, Trump and western leaders trail
Prime Minister Narendra Modi received the highest approval rating among major world leaders, according to the latest Morning Consult Global Leader Approval Rating Tracker, with 75 per cent of Indian respondents expressing support for his leadership. The ratings are based on data collected from July 4 to July 10, 2025. PM Modi's approval rating was above some of the most popular world leaders. South Korea's Lee Jae-myung ranked second with a 59 per cent approval rating, while Argentina's libertarian President Javier Milei stood at 57 per cent. Narendra Modi becomes second-longest serving PM Prime Minister Modi saw the highest approval rating among 25 global leaders listed. His domestic disapproval stood at just 18 per cent, while 7 per cent of respondents had no opinion. This comes as PM Modi completed 4,078 consecutive days in office on July 25, 2025, surpassing Indira Gandhi's record of 4,077 days between January 1966 and March 1977. This achievement makes him the second-longest serving Prime Minister in a single continuous term, behind only India's first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru. Donald Trump's approval hits new low US President Donald Trump has a 44 per cent approval rating, countered by a significant 50 per cent disapproval. This is higher than his approval rating conducted by a Gallup poll between July 7–21. Trump's approval rating has dropped to 37 per cent — the lowest of his second term and just above his all-time low of 34 per cent. The decline is sharpest among independents, whose support has plunged 17 points since January to 29 per cent. Though Republican approval of his policy handling ranges from 70 per cent to 93 per cent, support from independents and Democrats is minimal, with no issue crossing 36 per cent approval among independents and none exceeding 12 per cent among Democrats. Trump's second-quarter average approval stands at 40 per cent, well below the 59 per cent post-WWII presidential average. Only Richard Nixon's 44 per cent during Watergate comes close. Public discontent with western bloc leader Several leaders from North America and Europe continue to struggle with low domestic approval ratings. UK Labour leader Keir Starmer, currently in his first year in office, faces a challenging public perception, garnering just 26 per cent approval against a 65 per cent disapproval rating. Similarly, French President Emmanuel Macron and Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala are at the bottom of the list, tied at a mere 18 per cent approval and a staggering 74 per cent disapproval each. In contrast, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has a stronger showing, with a 56 per cent approval rate despite a 31 per cent disapproval margin. Mixed sentiments in Europe Europe presents a varied picture. While Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk holds a 41 per cent approval rating, other leaders such as Italy's Giorgia Meloni (40 per cent), Germany's Friedrich Merz (34 per cent), and Austria's Christian Stocker (34 per cent) face more tepid support. Their disapproval ratings remain high, ranging between 50 and 58 per cent. The tracker also shows strong domestic discontent in Spain, where Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez holds only 30 per cent approval, with 63 per cent of respondents disapproving of his leadership. Emerging markets and new faces Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico's newly-elected president, has received a 53 per cent approval rating in her early days in office, while Switzerland's Karin Keller-Sutter garnered 48 per cent. Brazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva sees his numbers slip, now standing at 32 per cent approval with 60 per cent disapproving. Global leader approval ratings (July 2025, Morning Consult) Global leader approval ratings No. Leader Country Approval Disapproval No Opinion 1 Narendra Modi India 75 per cent 18 per cent 7 per cent 2 Lee Jae-myung South Korea 59 per cent 29 per cent 13 per cent 3 Javier Milei Argentina 57 per cent 37 per cent 6 per cent 4 Mark Carney Canada 56 per cent 31 per cent 13 per cent 5 Anthony Albanese Australia 54 per cent 35 per cent 11 per cent 6 Claudia Sheinbaum Mexico 53 per cent 40 per cent 7 per cent 7 Karin Keller-Sutter Switzerland 48 per cent 28 per cent 24 per cent 8 Donald Trump United States 44 per cent 50 per cent 6 per cent 9 Donald Tusk Poland 41 per cent 49 per cent 11 per cent 10 Giorgia Meloni Italy 40 per cent 54 per cent 6 per cent 11 Cyril Ramaphosa South Africa 37 per cent 54 per cent 10 per cent 12 Bart De Wever Belgium 36 per cent 50 per cent 14 per cent 13 Friedrich Merz Germany 34 per cent 58 per cent 8 per cent 14 Christian Stocker Austria 34 per cent 54 per cent 12 per cent 15 Jonas Gahr Støre Norway 33 per cent 60 per cent 6 per cent 16 Recep Tayyip Erdoğan Turkey 33 per cent 50 per cent 17 per cent 17 Ulf Kristersson Sweden 33 per cent 58 per cent 9 per cent 18 Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Brazil 32 per cent 60 per cent 7 per cent 19 Dick Schoof Netherlands 32 per cent 50 per cent 18 per cent 20 Pedro Sánchez Spain 30 per cent 63 per cent 6 per cent 21 Keir Starmer United Kingdom 26 per cent 65 per cent 10 per cent 22 Shigeru Ishiba Japan 20 per cent 66 per cent 15 per cent 23 Emmanuel Macron France 18 per cent 74 per cent 8 per cent 24 Petr Fiala Czech Republic 18 per cent 74 per cent 9 per cent
Indian Express
3 hours ago
- Indian Express
Tased, choked and held: Video shows US citizen, his friends being detained in Florida
A routine traffic stop in Florida turned into a violent and racially charged arrest on May 2, when 18-year-old US citizen Kenny Laynez-Ambrosio and his friends were detained by officers from the Florida Highway Patrol and US Border Patrol. The incident, caught on Laynez-Ambrosio's phone, has sparked widespread outrage and renewed scrutiny of immigration enforcement tactics under the Trump administration. Laynez-Ambrosio was driving with his mother and two male friends to a landscaping job in North Palm Beach when their van was pulled over. Florida Highway Patrol called for backup after checking IDs, and US Border Patrol agents soon arrived. In the video footage, officers in tactical gear can be seen violently detaining the men, two of whom are undocumented. One man is put in a chokehold, another appears to be stunned with a Taser, and officers can be heard telling Laynez-Ambrosio: 'You've got no rights here. You're a migo, brother.' A post shared by The Guatemalan-Maya Center (@guatemalanmayacenter) Moments later, officers are heard laughing about the incident and joking about possible bonuses: 'You can smell that … $30,000 bonus.' Laynez-Ambrosio was also pushed to the ground, threatened with a stun gun, and held in custody for six hours. His two friends were transferred to the Krome detention centre in Miami. Laynez-Ambrosio believes they've since been released on bail. Laynez-Ambrosio hadn't planned to record the encounter. 'I already had my phone out to show my mom a silly TikTok,' he said, but hit record when officers grew aggressive. 'One of the officers put his hand inside the window, popped the door open, grabbed my friend by the neck and had him in a chokehold.' A report by The Guardian further added that despite identifying himself as a US citizen — 'I was born and raised right here' — Laynez-Ambrosio was arrested and later charged with obstruction without violence. He was sentenced to 10 hours of community service and an anger management course. While in detention, officers allegedly pressured him to delete the footage. He refused. His attorney, Jack Scarola, believes the charge was retaliation: 'Kenny was charged with filming [and was] alleged to have interfered with the activities of law enforcement. But there was no intended interference – merely the exercise of a right to record what was happening.' A post shared by The Palm Beach Post (@pbpost) The footage shows officers making light of the violence. One Border Patrol agent can be heard saying, 'They're starting to resist more now,' to which another replies: 'We're going to end up shooting some of them.' Later, officers cheer: 'Goddamn! Woo! Nice!' It's unclear what bonus they were referencing, though Trump's latest spending bill allocates billions for ICE, including recruitment incentives and bonuses. The Florida Highway Patrol, CBP and ICE declined to comment, The Guardian reported. But critics say the episode reflects the broader risks of state-federal cooperation on immigration enforcement. As per a report, in February, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed a deal with the Department of Homeland Security to allow state troopers to be trained and empowered by ICE to detain immigrants — part of a broader push to deputize local police in immigration enforcement. Florida has the most such agreements in the country. Father Frank O'Loughlin, director of the Guatemalan-Maya Center, said the arrest showcases the human cost of politicised immigration policy: 'This is a story about the corruption of law enforcement by MAGA and the brutality of state and federal troopers – formerly public servants – towards nonviolent people.' Laynez-Ambrosio, still shaken, said he recorded the incident to protect his friends, neither of whom speak English well. 'I wasn't really worried about myself because I knew I was going to get out of the situation. But I was worried about him. I could speak up for him but not fight back, because I would've made the situation worse,' Laynez-Ambrosio said. Despite the trauma, he hopes the footage brings awareness: 'It didn't need to go down like that. If they knew that my people were undocumented, they could've just kindly taken them out of the car and arrested them. It hurt me bad to see my friends like that. Because they're just good people, trying to earn an honest living.'
NDTV
4 hours ago
- NDTV
"PM Modi Wants To Make Cholas Global, DMK Keeping Them Local": K Annamalai To NDTV
Chennai: Former president of the BJP's Tamil Nadu unit K Annamalai on Saturday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to make the Cholas"global". Speaking to NDTV, a day ahead of PM Modi's visit to Tiruchirappalli to attend a mega festival to celebrate the legacy of Chola emperor Rajendra Chola I (1014-1044 CE), Mr Annamalai also slammed the ruling DMK, saying they want to keep Cholas "local". "Tomorrow is going to be a very, very important day, not just for Tamil Nadu, but for the whole Bharat (India)," he said, referring to the event at the Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its intricate sculptures, Chola bronzes, and ancient inscriptions. It also commemorates 1,000 years of the maritime expedition of Rajendra Chola I to South East Asia, Mr Annamalai said. He said that PM Modi, who is visiting Tamil Nadu straight after his "successful" trips to the UK and the Maldives, is trying to put Gangaikonda Cholapuram on the global map. He also praised PM Modi for releasing a commemorative coin honouring Rajendra Chola I. Mr Annamalai said Chief Minister MK Stalin-led DMK is "nervous" about PM Modi's tour as they have not done anything for the Chola dynasty. "The DMK has never celebrated Cholas," he said, adding that no chief minister from the party has ever visited Gangaikonda Cholapuram, which was the capital city of the dynasty. "When the PM is trying to take Cholas global, the DMK wants it to be local," he said. Speaking on the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, which are due next year, Mr Annamalai said the ruling DMK is set for a "historic defeat". "DMK's days are numbered," he said.
