Donald Trump’s multitude of transgressions has finally begun to catch up with him. Of course, the Bob Woodward book, Fear: Trump In The White House, the anonymous op-ed in The New York Times calling out a warning, and the many indictments of people around the president did not help. The latest polls conducted by PBS/Marist and Quinnipiac University reflected this huge Republican problem.
POTUS has a terrible approval rating among American voters. Just 38-39 percent of the eligible voters in the poll approved of Trump. That could be disastrous for the GOP and excellent news for the Democratic party.
The last Marist and Quinnipiac University polls indicated that Trump’s job approval rating was 38 percent with 54 percent disapproving.
Democrats’ lead was a remarkable 8.4 percent in RealClearPolitics’ polling average. Most strategists in either party believed that after that number reaches 7 percent, Democrats will likely win back the House. It is also possible that they could take the Senate, which has a meager Republic 51-49 lead.
The news that the courts found two of Trump’s top people guilty, first started Trump’s plummet to a 40.7 percent approval rating and 53.6 disapproval.
The director of the Marist Institute for Public Opinion, Lee Miringoff said:
‘Every way we are looking at the data, the same general pattern is emerging. The Midwest is an area that is getting restless about what they hoped was going to occur and what they feel is not occurring.’
The Republican party, under the leadership of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI), has been “totally in lockstep with the president,” Miringoff added:
‘Republicans have not only been fairly silent in opposition to the president, but they’ve been driving very hard in the Senate when it comes to his Supreme Court nominee. Congressional Republicans are buying into Trump for November. In terms of brand, they look totally in lockstep with the president — and that has become extremely clear to voters. It’s not that Democrats are going to carry rural America, but (Republicans are) not performing the way the president needs them to.’
What has always been true was that the president’s approval rating affected the outcome of the leading party. It has cast “a cloud over the GOP Congress,” the director said:
‘Presidents’ approval ratings, when they are low in midterm elections cause havoc for the party in power. (Trump’s approval rating is) casting a cloud over the GOP Congress.’
The following showed how a president’s approval rating affected losses in the House and Senate:
2010 — Obama 45% approval – Lost 63 House, Lost 6 Senate
1994 — Clinton 48% approval – Lost 52 House, Lost 8 Senate
1974 — Ford 54% approval – Lost 48 House, Lost 5 Senate
1966 — LBJ 44% approval – Lost 47 House, Lost 4 Senate
1946 — Truman 33% approval — Lost 45 House, Lost 12 Senate
1982 — Reagan 42% approval – Lost 26 House, Gained 1 Senate
1954 — Eisenhower 61% approval – Lost 18 House, Lost 1 Senate
1978 – Carter 49% approval – Lost 15 House, Lost 3 Senate
1970 — Nixon 58% approval – Lost 12 House, Gained 2 Senate
1990 — HW 54% approval – Lost 8 House, Lost 1 Senate
1962 — JFK 61% approval – Lost 4 House, Gained 3 Senate
2002 — Bush 63% approval – Gained 8 House, 2 Senate
The NPR/Marist poll interview 777 registered voters from September 5th through 9th. Its margin of error was 4 +/- percentage points.
Featured image is a screenshot via YouTube.
