‘MAGA’ Success Galvanizes Donald Trump Approval Ratings to All-Time High
Donald Trump has never been more popular. | Source: (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP
By CCN.com: Donald Trump has been a divisive figure thanks to his antics that have landed him more haters than friends, but that seems to be changing now as he starts living up to his promise of making America great again.
Trump is the only American President in modern history to have never seen a job approval rating of 50 percent. But don’t be surprised if he inches closer toward that number in the coming weeks based on the latest Gallup data.
Trump’s popularity hits a new peak
Gallup’s latest poll puts Donald Trump at 46 percent job approval, which is the highest number he has seen in over two years as President.
Of course, the latest figure still means that there are more people (50 percent) who don’t approve of the job that Trump is doing as a President. But there’s a favorable pattern that’s sure to pump up Trump supporters.
A closer look at Gallup data reveals that Donald Trump’s approval rating has picked up the pace in the past couple of months. He was at 39 percent approval in the first half of March and then saw a massive spike to 45 percent approval in the early half of April.
So what has changed in recent weeks? And will Donald Trump be finally able to crack the 50 percent job approval rating that has proved elusive so far?
Donald Trump makes inroads into rival camps
What’s surprising from Gallup’s latest poll numbers is that Democrats are changing their perception toward the job that Trump is doing.
In March, only 4 percent of Democrats approved of the job that Trump was doing, according to CNN . But in April, the number went up to 10 percent. What’s more, Trump’s approval among independents has gone up to 39 percent in April from 33 percent approval during the previous month.
The sharp increase in Donald Trump’s job approval rating, especially among Democrats and independents, can be attributed to the uptick in the American economy so far in 2019. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported late last month that the US economy grew at an annual pace of 3.2 percent during the first quarter of 2019.
That number was way better than the original expectation of 2.1 percent. The US economy’s first-quarter performance was a pleasant surprise, as severe weather conditions, the trade war with China, and a government shutdown should have ideally weighed on the country’s growth. But improved spending by local and state governments and a decline in imports boosted economic growth beyond expectations.
The case for a 50 percent approval rating, and a potential re-election
The latest Gallup poll doesn’t take into account the blockbuster April job numbers when unemployment fell to a 49-year low. The US economy added 263,000 jobs in April as the unemployment rate declined to 3.6 percent, adding to Donald Trump’s economic success.
So don’t be surprised if the next Gallup poll shows Trump at close to 50 percent job approval once the April jobs numbers are baked in.
Finally, Democrats and critics alike are now admitting that Donald Trump is doing a solid job of boosting the economy that could improve his re-election chances. According to CNN :
The [jobs report] comes on the heels of the announcement that the US economy grew at a much better rate than expected in the first quarter, and Trump’s performance on the economy becomes one of his prime selling points for next year’s general election.
In all, Donald Trump seems to be building a case for himself for 2020 based on the US economy’s performance. Calls for his re-election are gaining momentum while Trump’s new Federal Reserve appointee is scaring the living daylights out of the stock market by warning of a huge crash if Democrats come to power.
