Lowest approval on trade policy: Trump’s approval rating steady at 48%

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump’s approval rating is steady at 48 percent, with the highest approval on his handling of immigration (51 percent) and reducing the cost of government (50 percent), and the lowest on his handling of inflation (41 percent) and tariffs and trade policy (41 percent).

These are the highlights of the April Harvard CAPS / Harris poll, a monthly collaboration between the Center for American Political Studies at Harvard and the Harris Poll and HarrisX.

The majority of voters continue to support Trump’s policies, the poll finds. Deporting illegal immigrants who have committed crimes (74 percent), closing the border (70 percent), and eliminating waste in government expenditures (69 percent) have the highest support among voters; Renaming the Gulf of Mexico (37 percent) and tariffs on China, Mexico, and Canada (50 percent) have the lowest approval rating.

47 percent of voters oppose Trump’s tariff programme while 45 percent support it. 48 percent of voters say the Trump administration’s tariff policies are the right idea but require more patience to work. 52 percent of voters say Trump is doing a better job than his predecessor Joe Biden.

43 percent of voters say Trump is doing worse than expected. 84 percent of voters and a majority across parties support free trade.

78 percent of voters say free trade has been beneficial to the U.S. economy, and 82 percent say it has been beneficial to them and their family personally.