Trump in 'politically impossible' bind as he finally loses most loyal supporters

MAGA has finally had it with President Donald Trump’s Iran war, with just a third saying it is worth the economic costs — a steep drop since May, when over half supported the commander-in-chief. This means that Trump is underwater with the one group that has remained loyal to him for a decade now.

The poll, conducted by Politico, revealed a 13-point drop in just two months, and signaled that “the president’s most die-hard supporters are starting to agree with the majority of Americans who have long opposed the U.S.’ involvement in the war.” What’s more, the survey found that “37 percent of self-identified MAGA Trump voters say the U.S. should continue its involvement only if it doesn’t increase costs, up from 29 percent who said the same in May ... Nearly 1 in 5 MAGA voters believe that the U.S. should end its war in Iran, regardless of the costs.”

This flagging support among Trump’s most loyal supporters is clear evidence that Americans are sick of the economic turmoil that has characterized the war and angered voters in the run-up to the midterms. According to one source close to the administration who spoke with Politico, the White House is “at a maximum level of frustration right now, and I was told by very senior people that the president is now fully aware that the only way to the victory that he wants is completely politically impossible. The American people just will not support the kind of escalation it would take at this point. We’ve got more dead Americans and a politically impossible situation.”

Politico notes the poll also shows that “non-MAGA Trump voters are even more down on the war, with only 21 percent believing it is worth higher costs, while 28 percent say that the U.S. shouldn’t continue the war regardless of costs. And the results show the president’s voters are broadly comfortable blaming the war for higher prices. When asked why gas prices have increased since the president took office, the majority of respondents blamed the conflict, including 57 percent of MAGA voters and 63 percent of non-MAGA Trump voters.”

Those who voted Trump in 2024 are also “split on whether gas prices would have gone up more, less or the same under a Democratic president compared with now — another indication that Americans are more willing to assign blame to Trump for the state of the economy. Equal shares of Trump voters say that prices would’ve gone up more under a Democrat (34 percent) and that prices would have gone up the same (35 percent). A notable 20 percent believe prices have gone up more under Trump.”

“This shows that as unpopular as the first round of war was from February to early summer, this second round is even more ridiculous,” said Curt Mills, executive director of the American Conservative magazine. “The American people quite simply do not get it, do not understand why we are in this war, and, yes, President Trump is king of the Republican Party. Yes, the president can do a lot and has a lot of latitude with his own supporters, but kings are not invulnerable from political reality.”