Trump to Make Iran Decision in the Next Two Weeks
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt quoted a statement from president Trump saying he will make a decision on potential strikes on Iran "within two weeks". (Source: Bloomberg)
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USA Today
13 minutes ago
- USA Today
Trump pivots to distractions as polls show collapsing support for his agenda
Trump pivots to distractions as polls show collapsing support for his agenda | Opinion Americans give Trump a failing grade on the budget, trade and immigration. That's tough to swallow for a politician who gauges everything on public perception. Show Caption Hide Caption 'No Kings' protests vastly outdraw Trump's military parade A stark contrast emerged in attendance between the Trump administration's Army birthday parade in Washington, DC, and the sweeping 'No Kings' protests held nationwide. unbranded - Newsworthy Recent polling data indicates that the majority of Americans disapprove of President Trump's budget bill, particularly its cuts to Medicaid. Trump's immigration policies, including increased ICE raids, are facing declining public support. The president's trade policies are also unpopular, with a majority of Americans disapproving of his approach. Trump's overall job approval rating has fallen since he took office, with more Americans disapproving than approving of his performance. Donald Trump's plan for his second term as president has been to run the table quickly to score one quick and big budget victory pushed through on artificial deadlines and whip the vote for Republican support in Congress. Trump paired that objective with two other staples of his reelection campaign – punishing America's allies with illogical trade wars and setting a historical record for the economy-disrupting mass deportation of undocumented immigrants. It's summer now, and the report card has arrived. Americans give Trump a failing grade on the budget, trade and immigration. That's tough to swallow for a politician who gauges everything on public perception. Trump, being Trump, is now pivoting to distractions, touting a military parade that flopped as an expensive boondoggle and then flipping from diplomacy with Iran to potentially ordering air strikes on that country. Take our poll: Should US go to war with Iran or support Israel from afar? | Opinion Americans disapprove of budget bill slashing Medicaid Let's start with Trump's budget, which Republican leaders in Congress call the "one big, beautiful bill" in honor of their continuing deference to whatever he wants and the dereliction of their duty to serve as a coequal branch of our government. The version that narrowly passed the House slashed federal safety net programs to boost tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Some senators, seeking to make things even better for the rich at the expense of the poor, want bigger cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and other programs. Opinion: Trump lied about the LA protests so you wouldn't see what he's really doing A batch of recent polls shows Americans reject that: A June 11 Quinnipiac University poll found that 53% of American voters oppose the budget bill, while 27% approve it. Nearly half of the voters polled said funding for Medicaid should go up, not down, while 40% said it should stay the same and just 10% wanted it cut. A June 16 Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found that 50% of Americans think we spend too little on Medicaid, while 31% say we spend enough and just 18% say we spend too much. Forty-five percent of Americans think we should spend more on food and nutrition assistance, while 30% say we spend enough and 24% say we spend too much. A June 17 KFF Health Tracking Poll found that 64% of Americans hold an unfavorable view of Trump's budget bill, while 83% of them hold a favorable view of Medicaid. Republican support for the bill came in strong at 61% at first, but then dropped by 20 points when the Republicans polled heard details about how the legislation would force millions off their health care plans. Polling finds Americans disagree with Trump on immigration, economy, border security This much seems clear: The more Americans learn about Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the more they find it small-minded and ugly. That explains the artificial deadlines. Trump and his Republican allies in Congress want to wrap this up by July 4. But Republican infighting – moderates who fear it goes too far, far-righters who complain it doesn't go far enough – will make for a contentious Congress for at least the next two weeks. While we wait, Trump is seeing his support on immigration – once his strongest issue – melt away in the summer of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. The Quinnipiac University poll found 54% of the registered voters surveyed opposed his approach to immigration, while 43% approve and 3% had no opinion. Trump campaigned in 2024 on reviving America's economy. But his trade wars, which have hit our country's international allies just as hard or harder than our geopolitical foes, are unpopular. Quinnipiac found that just 38% approve of Trump's trade policy, while 57% disapprove and 6% had no opinion. The AP-NORC poll found that 32% of Americans think we spend too much on border security, while 37% think we spend the right amount and 29% think we spend too little. Trump's approval rating continues to tank. Does it matter? In this time of divisiveness, a majority of Americans can agree on one thing: Trump is disappointing them as president. Just 38% of the votes surveyed by Quinnipiac approve of Trump's job performance, while 54% disapprove. Opinion: Threats against judges nearly doubled under Trump. Republicans blame the victim. That tracks with a Pew Research Center poll released June 17, which found that 41% of those polled approve of Trump's performance while 58% disapprove. Pew noted that Trump has lost ground in his approval rating since he was sworn into office again on Jan. 20. Don't expect Trump to spend too much time worrying about what Americans tell pollsters. He has a long history of touting polls when they hold good news for him and dismissing them when they don't. He also suggested just before the 2024 election that releasing poll results he didn't like "should be illegal." Here's what you can expect: more distractions from Trump as the Republicans fights it out on which version of his budget bill passes or fails in Congress. If they listened to Americans, they would kill the bill and start from scratch. Follow USA TODAY columnist Chris Brennan on X, formerly known as Twitter: @ByChrisBrennan. Sign up for his weekly newsletter, Translating Politics, here.
Washington Post
14 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Europeans see a 'window of opportunity' for diplomacy as they meet Iran's top diplomat
GENEVA — Iran's foreign minister plans to meet in Geneva on Friday with leading European counterparts, who hope to open a window for a diplomatic solution to the week-old military conflict that has seen Israeli airstrikes target Iranian nuclear and military sites and Tehran firing back . British Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who will meet Iran's Abbas Araghchi together with his French and German counterparts and the European Union's foreign policy chief, said that 'a window now exists within the next two weeks to achieve a diplomatic solution.'
Boston Globe
15 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Canadian tariffs on US steel and aluminum could rise depending on trade talks, Carney says
He added: 'In parallel, we must reinforce our strength at home – and safeguard Canadian workers and businesses from the unjust U.S. tariffs. That's why today we are announcing Canada will be introducing a series of countermeasures to protect Canadian steel and aluminum workers and producers. 'First, Canada will adjust its existing counter-tariffs on U.S. steel and aluminum products on July 21 to levels consistent with progress made in the broader trading agreement with the United States.' Carney said Trump's trade war is running the risk of a global recession. Advertisement 'The world is in the middle of a trade war and several wars, actual wars, including wars that can have quite significant implications for commodity prices and global growth,' said Carney, who led the central banks of both Canada and the United Kingdom. Trump has imposed 50% tariffs on steel and aluminum as well as 25% tariffs on autos. Trump is also charging a 10% tax on imports from most countries, though he could raise rates on July 9, after the 90-day negotiating period set by him would expire. Canada and Mexico face separate tariffs of as much as 25% that Trump put into place under the auspices of stopping fentanyl smuggling, through some products are still protected under the 2020 U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement signed during Trump's first term. Advertisement Canada is the largest foreign supplier of steel, aluminum and uranium to the U.S. and has 34 critical minerals and metals that the Pentagon is eager for. Nearly $3.6 billion Canadian dollars ($2.6 billion) worth of goods and services cross the border each day. Canada is the top export destination for 36 U.S. states. 'We need to stabilize the trading relationship with the United States. We need to have ready access to U.S. markets,' Carney said. Trump announced with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer that they had signed a trade framework Monday that was previously announced in May. The trade framework included quotas to protect against some tariffs, but the 10% baseline would largely remain as the Trump administration is banking on tariff revenues to help cover the cost of its income tax cuts. Carney didn't say if he would sign a deal with the U.S. if any tariffs remain in place on Canada. 'This a negotiation, and it is better for the Americans, and of course for Canada, to have true free trade between our countries, particularly in the steel, aluminum and auto sectors,' he said.
