A recent CBS poll has given former President Trump a temporary boost in public approval, despite experts rating his presidency far lower. Data from YouGov and academic surveys reveal a significant gap between voter favorability and scholarly rankings, highlighting widespread deep partisan divides and growing political polarization nationwide across America.
A CBS poll found that President Trump has favorable ratings, something he hardly ever had during his first presidency. This is good news for President Trump, as it seems that the public is still granting him a “honeymoon period”—at least for the time being.
The problem, though, is that Philip Bump’s prior administration is the only modern one he ranks higher than, as he explained in an article he penned for The Washington Post.
In his letter, Bump compared the performance of every top executive, from Joe Biden down to the current president, based on data collected the previous year. If you want to know how popular former presidents were in America, you can use YouGov. Two academics polled APSA members on the topic of presidential “greatness.”
So far, no president has had a wider disparity between his public and expert ratings than Trump. On the list of scholars, he ranks 45th, and among the general public, he comes in at number 20, just behind Biden.
According to Bump, the reason behind this is quite evident: he was in a “weird liminal space” between being a past president and a contender for reelection, and it was also during a time of hyper-polarization when presidents rarely received unfavorable feedback from members of their own party.
But there are warning signals for Trump under the surface, Bump went on to say.
“The average for Trump’s first term and Biden’s was under 50 percent, thanks to Trump. Trump’s second term has started a bit better — but his approval rating average at this point is still below everyone except himself, eight years ago,” he wrote. His average approval rating is still below 50%, and even at 53%, it’s lower than Biden’s average approval rating at the same point in 2021—and this is despite the fact that he received 53% approval from the CBS survey.
Per The Raw Story, even though Trump’s favorability saw a surge following the election, it is now beginning to decline as the news reports about his administration’s anarchy continue to dominate and some of his own supporters begin to have doubts, according to YouGov.
“A president who wants to assume the mantle of speaking for the people … must necessarily insist that the people agree with his actions. So a poll showing 53 percent approval becomes a hallmark of popularity,” Bump stated.
Luis Gochoco is a seasoned managing editor and writer with over a decade of experience covering politics, technology, gaming, and entertainment news. With a keen eye for breaking stories and in-depth analysis, he has established himself as a trusted voice in digital journalism. Luis is one of the key forces behind the success of GameNGuide, contributing to 12 million views through engaging and high-traffic content. He also played a pivotal role in generating 8 million views on International Business Times, shaping the platform’s technology and gaming coverage.
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