President Donald Trump’s approval ratings on the economy are at a historic low, according to CNN data analyst Harry Enten.
Enten said on Friday that Trump is “making history in all the wrong ways when it comes to the economy.” He told CNN’s John Berman that Trump’s net approval rating on the issue is the “lowest on record” for presidents one year into their second term.
“At this point, Donald Trump on the economy: minus 19 points. Of course, the key reason he got reelected and at this point he is way, way, way underwater. And that, I think, is a big reason why the majority of folks view term two, year one, as a failure for the man from New York,” Enten said on Friday.
Here’s how Trump’s net economic approval compares to other presidents at the same point in their second terms, according to Enten.
- Trump: -19 point economic net approval rating
- George W. Bush: -15 point economic net approval rating
- Barack Obama: -14 point economic net approval rating
- Ronald Reagan: +17 point economic net approval rating
- Bill Clinton: +35 point economic net approval rating
Enten also explained that Trump is “underwater” when it comes to other issues on the economy, including creating jobs and addressing the cost of living.
He cited a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, which found that more Americans believed Trump has done more harm than good on creating jobs, the cost of living and the cost of health care.
According to the poll, 43% of respondents said Trump has hurt the creation of jobs, while just 26% said he helped.
“This 43%, in terms of hurt, is actually lower than Joe Biden was at the end of his presidency in terms of creating jobs. So Trump not just worse than himself, but worse than Joe Biden was on, of course, an issue that really goes to the hearts and minds of Americans,” Enten said.
Enten also noted that 57% of respondents in the AP-NORC Center poll said he hurt the cost of living, while just 19% said he helped. Enten explained that this is a major shift from Trump’s first term in office, when Americans were evenly split on whether Trump has hurt or helped the cost of living.
“This is more of a flip flop, more of a shift than Anakin Skywalker going over to the dark side in Star Wars,” Enten quipped.
Enten concluded by suggesting Republicans will face an uphill battle in the 2026 midterm elections if Trump’s approval rating on the cost of living does not jump up.
“Donald Trump very desperately needs the help at this point, because again, when it comes to the cost of living, when 57% say Trump has hurt, that is a road to nowhere or it’s a road to Republican disaster in the midterm elections,” he concluded.
