The Economist and YouGov conducted a poll the week of February 2 on a wide range of topics to gauge the country’s mood now that the goals of the second Trump Administration are clear. Slightly more Americans approve strongly or somewhat of Trump’s job performance (46%) and than disapprove (44%). 90% of Republicans, 38% of Independents and 10% of Democrats approve of Trump’s job performance. His net approval is up 2 points than it was in his first term at this point but it is lower than Biden’s was in his second week (+8), and still lower than Trump’s approval last week (+6).
However, many of Trump’s plans included in the poll are opposed by more Americans than support them. His least popular hits include: the proposal to dissolve the Department of Education, firing FBI agents involved in January 6 investigation, and renaming the Gulf of Mexico.
More support than oppose his proposal to restrict bathrooms for transgender Americans and to deport student protesters accused of antisemitic behaviors in connection to Gaza protests.
A tariff of 25% on imports from Mexico and Canada, paused shortly after implementation, is opposed by 49% of Americans, while 33% support it. 70% believe increasing tariffs of foreign goods increases prices generally and 5% think it actually lowers prices.
53% of Republicans support each of Trump’s policies in the poll while no more than 35% of democrats do.
The policies with support numbers from both major parties:
Requiring Transgender people to use bathrooms that match their sex assigned at birth, rather than gender identity; 25% Democrats vs. 85% Republican support.
Using Guantanamo Bay to detain migrants deported from the mainland; 12% Democrats vs 74% Republicans.
Deporting international students accused of antisemitism during protests over the war in Gaza, 20% D vs 71% R.
Allowing parents to apply public funds to private or religious schooling, 19% D vs 67% R.
25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico, 10% D vs 64% R.
Offering federal workers a deferred resignation with 8 months of severance, 17% D vs 60% R.
Firing FBI agents who investigated the January 6, 2021 attack by Trump supporters on the United States capitol, 14% D vs 58% R.
Stopping the leasing of federal waters for offshore wind farms, 14% D vs 55% R.
Renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America, 10% D vs 54% R.
Dissolving the Department of Education, 7% D vs 53% R.
Only 30% of Americans polled believe that all or most of the executive orders signed by Trump this term are constitutional. This number includes 9% of Democrats and 59% of Republicans.
Most Republican-leaning Independents and Republicans (63%) approve strongly or somewhat of how congressional republicans are responding to Trump’s orders, 9% disapprove.
Democrat-leaning Independents and Democrats are divided on how congressional democrats re responding to Trump: 39% approve and 37% disapprove. On a separate question 62% of these people say Democrats in congress aren’t doing enough to resist Trump’s action that the members of congress disagree with. 22% say they’re doing the right amount and 3% say they’re doing “too much”.
36% say that the country is heading in the right direction, more than at any time during the early days of the Biden administration. This rise in popular sentiments is driven by Republicans. Just 5% said the country was heading in the right direction in October 2024 but now that number is up to 72%. This rise counters a decline in the sentiment from Democrats. 51% said the country was heading in the right direction in October, but that number has fallen to 15% today.
Since 2009, more Americans have said the country was on the wrong track than the right one. However, the share that say the country is going alright has gone up at the beginning of administrations- Obama (2009), Trump (2017) and Biden (2021) and now in Trump’s second term again.
51% of Americans believe that Elon Musk has a lot of influence on the Trump administration, 13% say they want him to have this influence. 46% say they would prefer if the tech billionaire had no influence at all and 4% say he has no influence now.
78% of Democrats think Musk has influence. 6% want him to and 80% want him to have none.
Republicans are more divided: majorities perceive him as having influence, slightly less prefer him having it, 85% vs 69%. The share who want Musk to have influence has fallen from 47% to 26% since the election.
Americans have a very or somewhat favorable view of Robert F Kennedy Jr (44%) vs those who view him unfavorably (40%).
74% say his claim that ultra-processed food is driving the obesity epidemic is definably or probably true.
30% agree with his assertion that the COVID-19 vaccine is ‘the deadliest vaccines ever’, 26% agree that antidepressants cause school shootings, 24% agree with his insistence that vaccines cause autism, and 22% agree that fluoride in water lowers the IQs of children.
13% of Democrats and about half of Republicans (51%) agree that it is ‘likely true’ that the COVID-19 vaccine has been the deadliest.
68% of Americans support increasing funding for social security, 62% for medicare, and 52% for medicaid. Those who don’t support increasing funding prefer funds stay where they are and very few support decreasing funding. Republicans are less likely to support increasing the funding for these programs, but many still do. 62% want more for Social security, 51% for medicare and 35% for Medicaid.
77% of Democrats want more for social security, 77% for medicare and 74% for medicaid. These are up from 67%, 69%, and 61% respectively last November.
59% of Americans say they heard about the deadly midair collision in Washington D.C. that killed over 60 people. There has been a six point drop since early January of Americans who say they aren’t afraid to fly at all, from 50 to 44%.
62% hold favorable views of the Federal Aviation Administration, 17% hold an unfavorable view.
However, 46% say some of the blame for the crash should be placed on the FAA than the other five entities asked about. 41% say some blame belongs to the Army and 27% say to the commercial airline.
48% of Democrats assign a great deal or some blame to the Trump administration.
Republicans are more likely to place some blame on the FAA (59%), the army (49%), and the Biden administration (40%). 39% of Republicans ay DEI policies are to blame, a theory pushed by President Trump in the aftermath of the crash.