President’s Approval Rating Drops

The start of August has not been kind to President Donald Trump. After seeing a slight uptick in his approval rating over the past few months, a series of tragedies and bad economic news are chipping away at his numbers. A Fox News poll showed disapproval of the president at 56%, just 1 point shy of the highest number they have recorded.

The 56% disapproval rating represents a 5 point jump from July. The previous high of 57% occurred in October of 2017. Disapproval hit record highs with white men at 46% and men overall at 53%, while also reaching record highs with Independents at a staggering 64%.

Back to back mass shootings in Texas and Ohio were the first events to hit the president’s approval rating. President Trump’s handling of the aftermath of the two tragedies has been widely panned. The shootings have once again brought the topic of gun control back to the political forefront. In general, Republicans have opposed any form of gun control in recent years.

The next hit to the president’s approval came from the economy. President Trump inherited a strong economy from his predecessor and has thus far managed to keep the good times rolling. However, an inverted yield curve in the bond market sounded the alarm for a possible recession in the coming months.

The president was quick to blame the Federal Reserve for the problems in the bond market, but most economists blame Trump’s trade war with China for our murky economic future. Another issue is that the short term benefits of the president’s tax cut are beginning to fade. The economy is due for a recession, as we are currently enjoying one of the longest peacetime expansions in our nation’s history.

The timing of the bad numbers could be worse. We are still over a year away from the 2020 presidential election. President Trump has plenty of time to right the ship and improve his numbers. Democrats are still embroiled in a tough primary fight. While Trump is their primary target, they are also busy fighting amongst themselves.