Americans Strongly Disapprove of Trump Priorities: Analyst ‘I am Just Shocked’

In the meme-era, dominated by social media – one with very little regard for contemplation, long-term goals, or planning, things can change at the speed of sound. And it looks like Americans have heard a lot recently from newly reinstalled President Trump and many don’t like what they hear. Put another way, they want to hear far more about an issue more important to them.

As this column notes all the time, fairly or unfairly, the American body-politic cares almost exclusively about the economic climate – as a starting point – and pins responsibility primarily on a president. The maxim is true enough in a normal administration.

But Trump has taken great pride in setting his administration apart as “unique” and the numbers now show that Americans are uniquely upset that they’re not hearing enough about the economy. The numbers generated by a new CBS/YouGov poll have left CNN’s Harry Enten “shocked” – the message is clear.

The poll asked people whether they believe that Trump is prioritizing matters correctly, or – perhaps better put, whether Trump is sufficiently focused on the economy. Turning the question on its head a bit and it would seem that Americans are fairly tired of hearing about other stuff (Greenland? Governor Trudeau?) and not so much about increasing prices or decreasing stock value. Enten ran through his analysis as reported by Rawstory:

“[H]ere on Planet Earth, 82 percent say it’s almost as if Trump is on Planet Krypton. (82% the number putting the economy as top concern) Look at this: He is prioritizing the economy, just 36 percent… If the economy is the No. 1 issue, if that’s what Americans think you should be prioritizing and well, less than half think that you are. No wonder Trump is having problems with the economy, because simply put, he’s not putting it to the top of his list the way Americans are.”

It is always maddening that the state of economic growth is so reliant on the public’s perception of growth – whether accurate, warranted, whatever, or not. Expanding an economy can be nearly impossible when a majority of people believe you are not doing enough to expand said economy. Worries become self-fulfilling, only to then create a negative feedback loop.

Enten went through an overview as to why the stock market plays such a key role in the public’s perception (Shooting downward this week, but up 250-300 at this moment). The Dow does broadly impacts citizens – the majority of employed Americans have some sort of savings/retirement plan in a 401K or other savings vehicle, one tied to the market.

There is also the fact that it just happens to be a number and an arrow – always a bit easier to understand and thus used as an indicator. The Dow can both reflect and set the mood, making the losses this week notable.

Again, how the country “feels” matters, perhaps too much so as compared to conditions on the ground. Those conditions, even as admitted by Trump officials regarding prices and pain (temporary, they say), look to be getting worse. This will be tough to take for voters who were promised relief from inflation. But harnessing inflation does little good when prices increase due to tariffs. As to whether Trump will get a bump of approval from his latest speech:

“We will see, but I will just say color me very skeptical, because going back through history, the job approval shift post-speech to Congress, the average president goes up. Get this, but just 0.3 points. Trump’s average was up 1.6, but that was just a momentary bump. That really isn’t going to change the game. Something’s going to happen, have to happen with him on the economy and perceptions of him and how he’s dealing with the economy if he wants to see his approval rating go up instead of go down like it currently is.”

Something is going to happen. Yes, and it’s easy to envision who might make it happen and even what might happen. With all three branches firmly in conservative control we often forget the “umbrella branch,” the business interests from Wall Street to Hollywood – “big money”. It is difficult for any elected pol to do anything when going against Corporate America TM.

This is never more true than when looking at actions directly bearing on the economy. Big business hates stagnation, inactivity, unpredictability, and self-inflicted wounds – all of which appear to be on a horizon with tariffs, increased costs, and cuts to government benefits. They will often trade quite a bit for the promised tax cuts to the wealthy.

Trump is able to take a hacksaw to the government because the idea of “Government efficiency” and “cutting waste” enjoys broad support. Is anyone really against cutting waste? No. But now he’s up against it because no one envisioned cutting Social Security or Medicare – which now look like distinct possibilities.

Add increased prices due to tariffs (Never mind 25% on Canadian-made cars, try 10% on everything coming out of China – inflation never got into double digits), and there is and will be substantial reason for economic worry. That is exactly what the market reflected earlier in the week as the tariffs looked to go into effect.

But back to the original point. Without regard to whether prices are rising, or whether Social Security has the money or ability to get benefits out the door, the polls indicate that the public isn’t happy with Trump’s focus. Clearly, Americans want to hear more about what will be done about the economy, almost inherently meaning they want less of everything else.

It remains to be seen whether the administration can turn that corner – if it even wants to. Dropping poll numbers can wipe out the will to go forward on some of the more radical ideas. Dropping Wall Street approval can wipe out the means.

This administration is running the very real risk of way overplaying its hand. Very few Americans believed that Musk would be firing park rangers and weather forecasters, much less so air traffic controllers or VA workers. They voted against rising prices but now know how tariffs play out. Americans damn sure didn’t vote to cut Social Security or Medicare and yet we keep hearing that those cuts may well be coming – they admit Medicaid is on the block, much to the displeasure of many in the House GOP.

Support can drop nearly overnight. It won’t result in a change in administrations but it could result in a reluctant Congress. It is possible there will be less money flowing from Wall Street to some political coffers, perhaps more to those wanting to walk things back.

Things change. Sometimes faster than planned. Especially coming out of this speech and the imposition of tariffs, it will be interesting watching the reaction over the next two weeks.