'Really nauseating': Expert says Trump likely knows 'he messed up' big on economy

16 May

U.S. President Donald Trump reacts during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney (not pictured) in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 6, 2025. REUTERS/Leah Millis

President Donald Trump's approval rating dropped significantly amid growing criticism of his administration's economic policies. Recent polls show approximately 45% approve of his performance, while 51% disapprove.

In a piece published Friday, New York Times opinion writer Frank Bruni hosted a "written online conversation" featuring the views of political analysts to assess Trump's handling of the economy.

Statistician and political analyst Nate Silver said: "Most presidents see their approval ratings decline early in their terms, but according to our tracking, Trump’s numbers had a particularly steep decline in April, falling late in the month to about a –9 net approval rating from about a –3 at the start of the month."

"To put that in more concrete terms, just shy of 10 percent of people who voted for Trump now seem to have regrets, according to the latest Times/Siena poll," Silver said.

He added that most of this decline in the president's approval rating can be attributed to his controversial policy of tariffs, "which also produced some of the lowest consumer confidence numbers since the 2008 recession."

"It’s such an own goal to win an election in which inflation is the single most important issue and then turn around and announce a 25 percent tariff on cars — maybe enough of an own goal that Trump seems to realize he messed up," Silver continued.

GOP pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson saidthings like job approval are just not able to rise to the heights of previous decades, adding, "40 percent is the new 50 percent."

"The ceiling for these numbers is lower than it used to be. That said, I would be concerned about some of the softness I am seeing in numbers around areas like the economy that used to be real strengths for Trump," Anderson added.

According to Silver, the argument that "Trump’s good on the economy, and much of the rest of it is Trump derangement syndrome” can be persuasive to a certain kind of voter when the economy is doing well but not when it isn’t.

Bruni said: "Trump’s economy has more than the sniffles. But every time it seems on the verge of intensive care, Trump tweaks the treatment. By backing off his chest-thumping — and, it turns out, vacuous — threats against China, he may be warding off the worst of price increases, calming the stock market and reassuring some Americans."

"But will they remember the needlessly herky-jerky turns and stomach-knotting dips and punish him for that? I mean, this is less like governing and more like a really nauseating amusement park ride," he added.

According to Anderson, if the economy ends up fine, this will be something of a distant memory come the 2026 midterms. But she added: "'If' is doing a huge amount of work in that sentence."

AlterNet reached out to the White House for comment.

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