Donald Trump has managed to waste any semblance of postelection goodwill within just over two months. His approval ratings have consistently declined—from 47% to 45% and now to 43%, as reported by Gallup—while the American public has begun to see what Trump and his circle of affluent advisors have planned. This has involved diving headfirst into the Project 2025 blueprint, which Trump previously attempted to distance himself from during his campaign.
His priorities thus far have included the peculiar renaming of the Gulf of Mexico, issuing threats toward Greenland, imposing tariffs that have put pressure on Canada and Mexico, and even speculating about a potential third term. (Speaking of random renaming: Happy “Liberation Day”!) Meanwhile, Trump has permitted unelected billionaire Elon Musk to exert unchecked influence over federal agencies, endangering essential cancer and Alzheimer’s research through proposed government cuts. According to a recent Harvard-HarrisX poll, Musk’s own favorability has plummeted by 10 points from February to March, amid protests against Tesla nationwide.
Let’s be clear: Trump’s mandate was never as “unprecedented and powerful” as he claimed. He entered office with a level of popularity that was essentially at its peak and was able to point to winning the popular vote, something he hadn’t achieved in two prior presidential campaigns. Nevertheless, Americans are quickly expressing their dissatisfaction with his handling of multiple issues; only 38% of US adults approve of his approach to trade negotiations, 40% favor his economic policies, and 41% approve of his stance regarding the Russia-Ukraine conflict and Social Security, according to a recent Associated Press–NORC Center poll. Immigration remains Trump’s strongest issue, though only 49% approve of his handling of it.
As Trump’s support gradually erodes, a chaotic scandal reminiscent of 2017 has emerged. Dubbed the Signalgate scandal, it seems to be a clear error: National Security Adviser Mike Waltz created a Signal group to discuss covert attack plans in Yemen, including 17 government officials like Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth—along with Atlantic editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg. Yet, the excuses for this significant security breach have included attacks on Goldberg, ranging from the trivial “Nobody was texting war plans, and that’s all I have to say about that” to suggesting on Fox News that Goldberg somehow “got on somebody’s contact” and was “sucked into this group.”
Despite having the opportunity to blame Waltz for the scandal, Trump chose not to. Reports indicate that he even contemplated whether to fire him, asking others, “Should I fire him?” According to The New York Times, Trump “told allies that he was unhappy with the press coverage but that he did not want to be seen as caving to a media swarm.” Although the White House has deemed the Signalgate issue closed, the fallout has already extended widely. A CBS News–YouGov poll indicated that “76% said using the app to discuss military plans was not appropriate—including 56% of Republicans.”
In 2016, Trump and the GOP condemned Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server as a significant offense. “People have gone to jail for one one hundredth of what—even one one thousandth of what—Hillary Clinton did,” Hegseth proclaimed on Fox Business at the time. Hegseth isn’t the only Trump official who criticized Clinton’s actions but is now minimizing Signalgate. Beyond the glaring hypocrisy, Signalgate serves as a concrete example that Trump’s second term is just as chaotic and reckless as his first.
Another sign that Trump’s actions might have political repercussions came when he withdrew Elise Stefanik’s nomination for UN ambassador last week. The underlying message was evident: Trump was worried about the GOP’s slim House majority and the potential loss of Stefanik’s once-secure Republican seat in a special election. “She is phenomenal, number one,” he stated to reporters on Friday. “She is a friend of mine… But she’s very popular in her district, and I didn’t want to take a chance.” Meanwhile, Republicans are concerned about the upcoming race for Florida’s Sixth District, a seat previously held by Waltz and one that Trump won by a significant margin just months ago.
Trumpism has consistently been disorganized and unable to deliver on its promises. Yet Republicans have rallied behind Trump again, largely because they lack the strength to oppose him—and they’ve remained largely silent even as chaos ensues. Trump reportedly warned automaker CEOs in private meetings not to increase prices in light of tariffs, which left many feeling anxious, according to The Wall Street Journal. Publicly, however, he claimed to “couldn’t care less if they raise prices.” While Trump may not be concerned about rising costs, 64% of respondents in a recent CBS News–YouGov poll indicated that his administration is not doing enough to lower consumer costs.
Such unpredictable behavior is negatively impacting the markets, with the Dow falling due to Trump’s recent tariff threats, and the S&P 500 is on track for its worst quarter since 2022. The issue with the mentality of moving swiftly and breaking things, as the phrase goes in Silicon Valley, is that we’re witnessing in real time the damage being done.
