The two issues crippling Trump — and pushing the GOP toward collapse

President Donald Trump is historically unpopular, at least when it comes to his second term — and it is because of two issues he has been stubbornly unable to fix.

Only 34 percent of registered voters approve Trump’s handling of the economy as of April 2026, compared to 49 percent in October 2018, according to a recent Fox News survey. This means that if they do not significantly improve, Trump’s Republicans are likely to suffer significant losses to the Democrats in the upcoming midterm elections. Even with 49 percent approving the economy in 2018, Republicans lost 40 seats in the House of Representatives (while gaining two in the Senate).

“The fresh data aligns closely with an NBC News Decision Desk Poll powered by SurveyMonkey, released Sunday, which showed 32 percent of adults approved of Trump’s handling of inflation and the cost of living,” NBC News reported. “These surveys also deepen a trove of numbers reflecting Americans’ dissatisfaction with the Iran war, which is tied to the economy by spikes in gas prices.”

The NBC Politics Desk went on to explain that “Trump’s troubles on the twin issues dominating his time and national headlines have not thrown his overall approval rating over a cliff. Instead, he has been suffering through a long, slow decline. The latest Decision Desk poll found that 37 percent of adults approve of his overall job performance, which is the lowest snapshot of his second term so far. That’s down from 39 percent who said the same in February, 42 percent in December 2025 and 45 percent a year ago.”

They added, “The Fox polling of registered voters generally shows the same trend, with Trump dropping from 49 percent overall approval in March 2025 to 42 percent now.”

A Fox poll released Wednesday night also found that 70 percent of respondents believe the economy is getting worse, a jump of 15 percent from the same time in 2025 and on par with the record high from the middle of President Joe Biden’s term in April 2023. Even a majority of Republicans, 56 percent, say general economic conditions are bad, with a similar number (52 percent) characterizing their personal finances as suffering.

Responding to a request for comment earlier this month about the link between Iran and the economy, White House spokesperson Kush Desai said that “President Trump has been clear about short-term disruptions as a result of Operation Epic Fury, and the Administration went into this military engagement with a plan to mitigate these disruptions to America’s long-term economic resurgence. As energy markets begin to stabilize, historic tax refund checks hit the mail, and the rest of the Trump administration’s pro-growth agenda continues taking effect, Americans can rest assured that the best is yet to come.”

Similarly White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers told AlterNet that “the United States’ energy dominance status, as the world’s leading producer and a top exporter of oil and natural gas, has positioned us to not rely on the free flow of oil through the Strait of Hormuz like other countries. If anything, Operation Epic Fury actually underscored the importance of producing reliable, affordable, and secure energy here at home. Many of our allies that have tried transitioning to intermittent and unreliable renewable energy sources have predictably failed to break their reliance on foreign oil that goes through the Strait."

She added, "Several countries from around the world are now looking to emulate the President’s energy dominance agenda and are advancing new partnerships that enhance their energy security with the United States.”

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