"Americans are sour on the economy, and Trump and the GOP are suffering because of it. In the December NPR/PBS News/Marist poll, 63% of respondents said the country is headed in the wrong direction. Trump gets just a 38% approval rating overall and an even lower 36% for his handling of the economy. A majority of people think the country is already in a recession, even though technically it isn't."
"Most presidents get more blame and credit than they deserve on economic success or failure. But in Trump's case, he's actively made things more expensive with his policies, particularly when it comes to the tariffs he's implemented. Polling has shown that people are blaming him for that, too. Two-thirds in the latest NPR poll said tariffs were a concern as it related to their budgets, and there is a Supreme Court decision looming about their legality."
"Democrats benefited at the ballot box in 2025 from those grim views, winning special congressional elections, the off-year gubernatorial elections and more. Winning off-year special elections is a good barometer of which party will do well in the following year's midterm elections, and the party in power has historically borne the brunt of the political punishment in tough times. That's likely to happen again if views of the economy and the cost of living don't improve."
Americans are broadly pessimistic about the economy, with 63% saying the country is headed in the wrong direction and a majority believing a recession is already underway. President Trump’s approval ratings are weak, particularly on economic handling, and many voters cite rising prices as their top concern. Democrats won multiple 2025 contests amid those economic concerns, and off-year election gains suggest potential trouble for the party in power in 2026 midterms if affordability doesn’t improve. Tariffs enacted under Trump are widely blamed for higher prices, and legal challenges plus polling raise questions about tangible remedies.
Read at www.npr.org
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