Opinion Today
February 20, 2025
CNN Poll: Americans worried by Trump’s push to expand power Jennifer Agiesta, CNN At the one-month mark of Donald Trump’s second term as president, his approval rating in a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS tilts negative but still lands above the level he reached at any point in his first four years in office. There are signs in the poll, though, that the warmer welcome Trump has received this time around could be fleeting, as optimism about his return to office has slipped since December.
Trump's Job Approval Rating at 45%; Congress' Jumps to 29% Megan Brenan, Gallup Less than one month into his second term in office, President Donald Trump’s job approval rating is at 45%, similar to his first post-inauguration reading of 47% in January. Trump’s ratings on several issues that his administration has targeted in the first weeks of his presidency are similar to his overall rating, including on immigration (46%), foreign affairs (44%), foreign trade (42%) and the economy (42%).
Majority Say System Of Checks & Balances Not Working Well Quinnipiac University Poll Less than 4 in 10 voters think the system of checks and balances between the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government is working well, while more than half of voters think it is not working well, according to a Quinnipiac University national poll of registered voters. Fifty-five percent of voters think Elon Musk has too much power in making decisions affecting the United States. Forty-five percent of voters approve of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president, while 49 percent disapprove.
Trump's approval rating slips as Americans worry about the economy Jason Lange, Reuters U.S. President Donald Trump's approval rating has ticked slightly lower in recent days as more Americans worried about the direction of the U.S. economy as the new leader threatens a host of countries with tariffs, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
Donald Trump's government, plans, and priorities; Elon Musk and DOGE; Russia and Ukraine: February 16-18, 2025, Economist/YouGov Poll Taylor Orth, YouGov This week’s Economist/YouGov poll covers Donald Trump's presidency, Elon Musk and DOGE, the administration's plans and priorities, and the Russia-Ukraine war.
How Americans view Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg Pew Research Center Americans’ views of two prominent tech executives – Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg – tilt more negative than positive. Musk is a deeply polarizing figure, with Republicans largely viewing him favorably and Democrats largely unfavorably. By contrast, views of Zuckerberg are less polarized, with majorities in both parties viewing him unfavorably.
Most continue to view air travel as a safe mode of transportation AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research The public has the most confidence in pilots and least confidence in the federal government to maintain air safety.
Americans’ confidence in air travel safety dips slightly after Washington plane crash: AP-NORC poll Linley Sanders, Associated Press Americans’ confidence in air travel and the federal agencies tasked with maintaining air safety has slipped a little from last year, following a recent crash in Washington, according to a new poll, but most still believe air transportation is generally safe.
LGBTQ+ Identification in U.S. Rises to 9.3% Jeffrey M. Jones, Gallup Gallup’s latest update on LGBTQ+ identification finds 9.3% of U.S. adults identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or something other than heterosexual in 2024. This represents an increase of more than a percentage point versus the prior estimate, from 2023. Longer term, the figure has nearly doubled since 2020 and is up from 3.5% in 2012, when Gallup first measured it.
No consensus on who comes to mind when Americans are asked to name a news influencer Emily Tomasik, Luxuan Wang, Jacob Liedke, Galen Stocking and Michael Lipka, Pew Research Center About one-in-five U.S. adults (21%) say they regularly get news from news influencers on social media, according to our recent study. But because the idea of “news influencers” is relatively new, we also wanted to know who Americans are thinking of when they hear the term.
What Parents Think Will Solve Learning Loss Alli Aldis (EdChoice), Informed Choice The in-school and out-of-school strategies to turn around some dismal numbers New Hampshire Bitterly Divided in Early Days of Second Trump Term, Republicans Extremely Optimistic on County's Future University of New Hampshire Survey Center New Hampshire residents are divided about President Donald Trump in the early days of his second term, with higher approval for Trump's handling of the economy than his handling of foreign affairs. Maine: Republicans Ecstatic, Democrats Despondent, Over Direction of Country in Early Days of Trump Term University of New Hampshire Survey Center President Donald Trump enjoys nearly unanimous approval of his handling of the economy, foreign policy, and his overall job performance among Maine Republicans but Democrats strongly disapprove. Vermonters Oppose Trump Executive Orders, Two-Thirds Disapprove of Overall Performance University of New Hampshire Survey Center President Donald Trump begins his second term with very low job approval ratings in Vermont, and most state residents disapprove of his handling of the economy and foreign policy. A Compliant Congress Earns High Marks, but Probably Not for Long Annie Karni, New York Times [unlocked] A major public poll indicates that Americans’ approval for Congress has soared, powered by a surge in positive assessments by Republicans. History shows such booms are common and rarely last. DOGE’s Reign of Ineptitude Derek Thompson, The Atlantic [unlocked] Slashing and burning won’t help with efficiency. The tactical ignorance of Elon Musk Philip Bump, Washington Post Musk’s claims of widespread fraud in the Social Security system merit skepticism. DOGE Has ‘God Mode’ Access to Government Data Charlie Warzel, Ian Bogost, and Matteo Wong, The Atlantic [unlocked] The president’s special commission now has an unprecedented ability to view and manipulate information at many federal agencies. After ceding power of the purse, GOP lawmakers beg Trump team for funds Liz Goodwin, Washington Post [unlocked] Republican senators are asking Cabinet secretaries and other Trump officials to let money flow back into their states. ‘Long Live the King’: Trump Likens Himself to Royalty on Truth Social Benjamin Oreskes, New York Times [unlocked] A fondness for regal themes was apparent as the president applauded his administration’s move to kill congestion pricing in New York. While Musk dismantles a pro-democracy group, America’s enemies cheer Max Boot, Washington Post DOGE targets the National Endowment for Democracy, a longtime Republican-supported organization. Trump Hands the World to China Michael Schuman, The Atlantic [unlocked] Xi Jinping could only have dreamed of such rapid destruction of American power. A Terrible Milestone in the American Presidency Tom Nichols, The Atlantic [unlocked] Trump switches sides in the war for freedom. A Trump outrage that stands apart David Ignatius, Washington Post The president blames Ukraine for its own brutalization. The American Who Went Undercover in Ukraine—for Moscow Brett Forrest and Vera Bergengruen, Wall Street Journal [unlocked] Daniel Martindale’s view of Russia as a sanctuary from a Western world he believed had lost its way underscores a shift among some American ultraconservatives. Once deriding Russia for its chaos and venality, they now idealize it as the one major power willing to oppose the U.S. and its allies. Non-MAGA Trump voters will soon lose patience Jared Bernstein, The Contrarian Trade wars and taking over the Kennedy Center won't lower prices. And people are starting to notice. Setting the record straight on Biden’s spending David Winston (Winston Group), Roll Call People understand that the economy can’t be turned around on a dime. They are willing to give Trump time to reverse the course the country has been on for the last four years. Why words matter in political fights Nathan L. Gonzales, Roll Call Eliminating ‘waste, fraud and abuse’ seems more like a partisan exercise What "Anti-Christian Bias" does for Trump Robert P. Jones, The Contrarian The president's executive order is a vehicle for white evangelical Protestant Christian favoritism, but it is also a weapon against other Christians. Liberalism in a Populist Era John Halpin, The Liberal Patriot Liberals should take some time in opposition to step back from daily social media and policy fights with Trump to answer a few key questions about what liberalism—and the political parties and candidates that back it—want to achieve for America. How Trump Rode a Wave of ‘Reactionary Nihilism’ to the White House Jennifer Szalai, New York Times [unlocked] A new book by the journalist Katherine Stewart finds a far-right movement seething in resentment, suspicious of reason and determined to dominate at all costs. Diary: Week 1 Adam Przeworski (NYU), Adam’s Substack I decided to keep a record of my thoughts as events transpire, a diary. I have read several reactions by Germans to the rise of Nazism and I was struck by their difficulty to understand where the daily events they lived through could or would lead. Why dismantling the PCLOB and CSRB threatens privacy and national security Stephanie K. Pell, Brookings Institution The dismantling of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) and the Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) is part of a broader but ever-dwindling system of government oversight and independent analysis that has become a casualty in the wake of the new Trump administration. Minnesota: Senate rating change J. Miles Coleman, Sabato’s Crystal Ball In Minnesota, Sen. Tina Smith’s retirement prompted us to move the contest for her seat from Likely Democratic to Leans Democratic.
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PLAYLIST
Is the U.S. headed for autocracy? Consider This from NPR Is the United States headed toward autocracy? That's a question prompted by a steady stream of executive orders seeking to consolidate power in the White House and upend long held policies and norms. New York Times Opinion writer M. Gessen lived through much of Russia's slide into autocracy, and wrote a book about it.
How Regime Change Happens In America Fresh Air During President Trump's first term, journalist Anne Applebaum reported on how he was moving toward authoritarianism. Now she's describing Trump's actions as regime change. "Our imagination of a coup or regime change is that there are tanks and violence and somebody shoots up the chandelier in the presidential palace," she says. "Actually, nowadays, that's not how democracies fail. They fail through attacks on institutions coming from within." Applebaum also talks about the dismantling of America's civil service system and how the Trump administration is distancing itself from NATO, while getting closer with Putin. Applebaum is a staff writer at the Atlantic and author of Autocracy, Inc.
Elon Musk’s A.I.-Driven Government Coup The Political Scene The New Yorker staff writer Kyle Chayka joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss Elon Musk’s seizure of power within the U.S. government, the tech industry’s slide into right-wing politics, and how the ideology of techno-fascism is taking root in Silicon Valley. Can the populists and the technologists coexist in Donald Trump’s Washington?
The Threat from Within Strong Message Here Comedy writer Armando Iannucci and journalist Helen Lewis decode the utterly baffling world of political language. This week, JD Vance sent European Leaders into a tailspin with an inflammatory speech at the Munich Security Conference, and Kemi Badenoch made an attention-grabbing speech at the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship. Looking at them side-by-side, what does it tell us about the language of the right on both sides of the Atlantic?
Robert Putnam reflects on how America became so polarized and what can unify the nation PBS NewsHour For over two years, Judy Woodruff has traveled the country exploring the roots of America’s divisions over race, religion, culture, wealth and more for America at a Crossroads. The series returns with political scientist Robert Putnam, who has spent decades studying these divides and how we might find our way back to a more unified nation.