President Donald Trump has earned historic negative ratings, with 61% of Americans disapproving of his performance as president, according to Fox News. But Family Research Council and other groups loyal to Trump claim his goals enjoy “broad support.”
“Broad Support Continues for Trump Agenda” claimed FRC in a May 27 article that cited a poll commissioned by right-wing group Tea Party Patriots Action. The Tea Party poll contradicts the near-unanimous bad news for Trump in other polls.
“A majority of voters approve of the president’s high-profile agenda items but are less certain in their support for GOP congressmen and candidates,” said the Family Research Council’s Washington Stand.
FRC said proof of Trump’s broad support can be seen in his success at defeating members of Congress who opposed his agenda in recent GOP primaries, including Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Senators John Cornyn of Texas and Bill Casady of Louisiana.
“Trump’s broad success in primarying establishment figures suggests that his approval ratings are nowhere near as low as mainstream media outlet polling suggests,” said FRC, which backed up its claim by citing the X account The Drunk Republican.
But Trump’s success in GOP primaries is best understood as a sign of his continuing control over the GOP, not his support among most American voters.
The Tea Party poll was conducted by McLaughlin & Associates, whose CEO John McLaughlin has worked on campaigns for Trump and other Republicans and advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Viktor Orban, the former Hungarian prime minister.
The poll was ignored by mainstream media outlets but cited by outlets loyal to Trump.
The poll was ignored by mainstream media outlets but cited by outlets loyal to Trump, including the Washington Examiner and Breitbart.
“The American people have spoken — and the radical left isn’t going to like what they said,” claimed the Tea Party of its poll, which “confirms what Tea Party Patriots Action has known all along: Common-sense conservatism is the majority position in this country.”
“The silent majority isn’t so silent anymore — and it’s time for the U.S. Senate to start listening,” said the Tea Party.
One key to the Tea Party poll’s unusually high numbers for Trump can be found in the careful crafting of questions designed to generate desired outcomes. The poll asked if people supported Trump’s agenda. The poll didn’t inquire about their views on Trump’s execution of that agenda or his performance in office.
“President Trump’s broad political and legislative agenda boasts strong support from the overwhelming majority of voters,” said a Tea Party spokesperson.
“Voters largely support the president’s immigration policy,” claimed FRC’s report on the Tea Party poll. While it’s true that most Americans support Trump’s handling of the southern border, most oppose his mass deportations, including Hispanics, who were crucial to Trump’s 2024 election.
“Another popular Trump platform plank is the slashing of waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars,” claimed FRC. But other polls clarify that a majority of Americans opposed Elon Musk’s handling of the DOGE initiative.
Americans are upset about affordability, and many cite Trump’s tariffs and war in Iran as causes of rising consumer prices. But FRC claimed affordability derives from “stopping the fraud, waste and corruption that’s driving up our national debt and our cost of living.”
“A majority (71%) of voters … support Trump’s argument that Iran cannot be permitted to ‘block, attack, mine or extort’ ships attempting to pass the crucial Strait of Hormuz,” reported FRC. But in reality a majority of Americans oppose Trump’s Iran war and believe it is hurting the economy.
“Voters also backed Trump’s plans to build a ballroom and security complex at the White House,” claimed FRC. But other polls show widespread disapproval for Trump’s destruction of the East Wing of the White House and efforts to secure $1 billion in taxpayers funding for the project he originally claimed would be paid for by donations.
Meanwhile, a recent ABC poll found that “Americans oppose Trump ballroom 2-to-1.”
The May 26 Fox News poll rebuts the rosy picture painted by the Tea Party poll and shows Trump’s poll numbers in precipitous decline. The economy was top of mind.
“A year ago, 56% of voters disapproved and last month it was 66%; now, it’s 71%,” said Fox News. “The increase since April comes from a 7-point rise in disapproval among Republicans.”
Fox also shows support for Trump declining among key constituencies. “Trump approval is at all-time lows among Republicans (80%), non-MAGA Republicans (54%), whites (43%) and rural voters (43%),” said the network.
Fox also found that “more voters think Trump’s policies will hurt the country (57%) than help it (34%).”