Smoking Polls

Even in the acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, most Americans thought Donald Trump was a good steward of the economy. This misplaced faith has been key to his political durability. But after just one month of indiscriminately firing federal workers, illegally reneging on federal spending commitments, and making erratic threats to tariff the bejesus out of our trading partners, his economic approval has fallen under water. So what’s going on?

In this episode, Matt and Brian discuss:

• Are people really just annoyed that Trump has ignored the price of eggs and other staple goods?

• Is it that by mistreating people and crippling important services, he’s created an unflattering news environment that has soured people on him generally?

• Or might he have actually tipped the economy into recession at lightning speed?

Then, behind the paywall, why does the explanation matter? Did Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries happen to land on exactly the right strategy to oppose Trump in his second term? If people are actually mad about the cruelty and lawlessness, does it suggest Democrats should shift their focus from egg trolling to forcing Trump back into regular order?And to that end, are Democrats prepared to force a confrontation over the rule of law as the deadline to fund the government approaches?

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Further reading:

• Brian on why losing popularity so quickly puts a big dent in Trump’s plan to become an autocrat.

• Matt on how foreign leaders on the receiving end of Trump’s tariff’s threats can exploit this weakness by calling his bluff.

• The perils of the Trump-GOP plan to cut Medicaid.