Only one third of Americans approve of Donald Trump’s handling of the cost of living in the U.S., a new poll has shown, as the president pushes ahead with his vow to implement sweeping foreign tariffs on imports from abroad.
The poll, carried out by Reuters / Ipsos ahead of Trump’s address to a joint session of Congress on Tuesday, showed the president’s approval ratings below 40 percent on a range of issues – including the economy, foreign policy and corruption.
The poll showed that 31 percent of Americans approve of Trump's handling of the cost of living, a drop of points from 34 percent in a poll conducted from February 21 to 23.
In the latest survey, 54 percent disapprove of his handling of the issue, while 15 percent did not answer the survey.
Unsurprisingly, along party lines, a whopping 87 percent of Democrats who responded said that Trump had mishandled the issue of cost of living, compared to just 21 percent of Republican respondents.
The poll suggests a sense of unease among Americans as Trump continues to push forward with his vow to impose steep tariffs on foreign imports, stoking inflation worries.
Trump has moved quickly, confirming steep 25 percent tariffs taking effect on Tuesday for Mexican and Canadian imports, as well as 20 percent tariffs on Chinese goods.
Economists say the tariffs will fuel inflation. Trump owed his victory in the 2024 presidential election largely to widespread dissatisfaction at several years of high inflation under Biden. Only 31 percent of people polled agreed with a statement that tariffs would be a good idea even if prices increase.
In fact, the economy under Trump’s first month in office is currently not what he promised on the campaign trail, with economists telling The Independent that it looks to be an uncertain year ahead for the average American.
“Trump is really pouring gasoline on the fire in many cases by implementing, across the board, indiscriminate tariffs,” Alex Jacquez, chief of policy and advocacy at Groundwork, said. “One month in, we are already starting to see some pretty concerning signs of economic weakness.”
