It's official: Trump is a historical failure and we're finally admitting it

Yahoo

4 days ago

One of the biggest lies Republican leaders are trying to sell Americans is that voters love President Donald Trump. Republicans keep talking about how great a job Trump is doing and how the general American public can't get enough of it.
Lies. All lies.
People across the country are furious and historically disapproving of the job the Republican king is doing. Don't take my word for it. The growing pile of polls paints a clear picture.
Ahead of the first 100 days of his second term, several news outlets polled American voters and found that most people are unsatisfied with Trump, perhaps finally realizing that his plans to 'Make America Great Again' only benefit a select few: his billionaire friends.
Trump has the lowest 100-day approval rating in the past 80 years. Wow.
Only 39% of Americans approve of Trump's actions as president, according to a Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos poll.
In a New York Times/Siena College poll, 66% of voters said that they'd describe Trump's second term in office as 'chaotic,' while 59% said they'd describe it as 'scary.'
An NPR/PBS News/Marist poll found that 45% of respondents would give the president an 'F' grade for his first 100 days in office.
In a CNN poll, 59% of respondents said that Trump's policies have harmed the U.S. economy.
Even Fox News had grim news for the president. Its latest polling shows the president's approval rating at 44%, down 5 percentage points from March.
If none of that convinced you that Americans have turned their back on Trump, you're just not ready for the truth.
The thing is, Trump made his plans clear on the reelection campaign trail. For months, he talked up his vision of mass deportations and tariffs. He proposed massive shake-ups in government, things like shuttering the Department of Education. It's not surprising that these things would lead America into turmoil. Trump wasn't joking about all of the destructive policies he wanted to implement.
Honestly, the only thing he joked about was his ability to fix the economy. That, to repeat, is something Americans know he's failing at.
Opinion: Trump made good on cruel promises, ruining countless lives. It's made America worse.
All these negative polls led to a typical Trump meltdown on social media. The president of the United States referred to these results as 'FAKE POLLS FROM FAKE NEWS ORGANIZATIONS' on Truth Social on April 28.
'They are Negative Criminals who apologize to their subscribers and readers after I WIN ELECTIONS BIG, much bigger than their polls showed I would win, loose a lot of credibility, and then go on cheating and lying for the next cycle, only worse,' Trump posted.
To be clear, the only person lying is Trump. He is the one trying to convince us that everything is great while people across the country suffer. He wants us to believe that a tanking economy and a tumultuous government are the fault of immigrants and transgender people, and it isn't working. Even after his declining approval rating, Trump is trying to convince his supporters that everything is fine.
"This is the best, they say, 100-day start of any president in history, and everyone is saying it," he said at an April 29 rally in Warren, Michigan. "We've just gotten started. You haven't even seen anything yet."
Opinion: Congratulations, Republicans! Your fear of pronouns is tanking the economy.
Trump's delusion is almost funny, were it not sending the United States into chaos.
It'd be nice if someone in the GOP would give him a reality check, but it seems Republicans are content letting him spout these falsehoods to voters. Republicans would rather, say, watch the economy shrink under Trump's first 100 days than demand he settle down a little.
You'd think that the Democrats would be doing everything to make the case for their party, considering that the 2026 midterm elections are closer than they appear.
Instead, the party seems to have basically given up – something that's also evident in polling numbers.
According to CNN, only 27% of voters approve of Democratic leaders in Congress, the lowest rating for the party since 2008. Even among voters who belong to or lean toward the Democratic Party, the majority disapprove of the party's leadership.
Not only are voters angry with Trump's approach to the presidency, they're also upset with congressional Democrats for failing to act in response.
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As someone who regularly votes Democrat, it's downright embarrassing to see the party flailing in a time when it could be building strength for upcoming elections.
I understand the desire to let Trump go down in flames, but something must be done to fix the Democrats' favorability ratings. If they are unable to create a coherent top-down message by 2026, I worry about what the country will become. They don't need to say 'I told you so.' They need to be talking to voters about the plans they have to combat the impending catastrophe.
Again, this is what Republicans voted for. This is what they said they wanted, even though it's clear that no one is happy with the current state of the country. A party with integrity would see these polling numbers and change course.
Instead, I feel confident that party leaders will continue bending the knee to a president voters wish somebody would stand up to.
Follow USA TODAY columnist Sara Pequeño on X, formerly Twitter: @sara__pequeno
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump's low poll numbers should surprise no one | Opinion