President Donald Trump (Photo: REUTERS/Nathan Howard)
Things are so bad for President Donald Trump that even former President Herbert Hoover, who was in office as the stock market crashed in 1929, did better than Trump is doing today.
A Fox News poll is so bad that it's sending Trump into a panic spiral, according to MS Now opinion editor James Downie, who discussed it on Greg Sargent's morning podcast for the New Republic. Downie explained that it isn't only about the economy.
"Although that is the most outstanding number," he noted, in general there is a "total collapse."
"You see a big movement, particularly as you said on the economy, in the last two to three months as gas prices have spiked because of the Iran war. And it’s brought down his opinion polls in general. We’re seeing more and more movement towards sort of the mid-thirties or even low thirties. That is traditionally the floor for any president. And it takes a lot of effort to reach those numbers—a lot of almost deliberate incompetence," said Downie.
Sargent read through the specifics, detailing that Trump's numbers on inflation are at just 24 percent approval and 76 percent against. The two recalled how bad things were for George W. Bush after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, leaving people stranded and dying in one of the largest cities in the U.S.
Even when it comes to issues like border security, where Trump and the GOP have traditionally been successful, the president is faltering. Sargent explained that it isn't an anomaly.
The historic lows are being confirmed across the board by data analysts and the "American Research Group poll, which was the first that I’ve seen that put Trump at 31 percent approval," echoed Downie.
The political adage "it's the economy, stupid," only goes so far. According to the panelists, there is no subject on which Trump is succeeding.
"And then I think also more generally, Trump kind of set himself up for this," said Downie. "He promised prices would come down on day one. He promised no more forever wars. He promised basically to a lot of voters that their lives would be sunshine and rainbows the moment he was back in office. And not only has it not happened, but he has been very publicly working against improving their lives and prioritizing things like the slush fund and his arch and his ballroom."
Sargent added that Trump is quickly losing ground with people like non-college white voters and rural America. "Men are turning against him."
"We’re used to thinking of Donald Trump as unpopular, and he has been an unpopular president throughout his entire term. But no president has ever been this unpopular at this point in his term," Downie added.
The danger isn't simply that these voters won't abandon the GOP; it's that they may not come out to vote at all in November.