| | | | | Donald Trump is as popular as he's ever been (in 1 poll) | | For the first time since his first week in office, 45% of Americans approve of the job President Donald Trump is doing in a new Gallup poll released Monday.
Trump's average rating in Gallup's weekly poll has been a less-than-robust 39%, but he's been over 40% since April and his approval numbers are now in line with other recent past presidents at this stage of their times in office. (Barack Obama was at 46% approval in June of his second year as president, as was Bill Clinton. Ronald Reagan was at 45%.)
Now. That's one poll. In a new CNN poll, Trump's approval is at 39%, down from 41% last month. And it remains to be seen how the White House's botched handling of the family separation crisis at the border will affect Trump's numbers going forward -- although it's hard to imagine it won't have an impact.
But the trend line is clear. According to Real Clear Politics' polling average, Trump is at 44.3% approval as compared to 50.9% disapproval. The RCP numbers suggest Trump is in better shape -- polling-wise -- than at any time since the early part of his time in office.
Why? Likely some combination of the strengthening economy -- as evidenced by lower unemployment numbers -- and Trump's high-profile summit in Singapore last week with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un.
Regardless of the reason, Republicans -- especially those on the ballot this fall -- will take it. As recently as a few months ago, GOP strategists were openly acknowledging the size of the Democratic electoral wave that could crash down on their side if Trump remained mired in the mid-30s in approval scores.
The Point: This Trump bump might be temporary. But if his trend upward continues, what looked like a disastrous 2018 election for Republicans might not be all that bad.
-- Chris | | "We have the Air Force and we're going to have the Space Force. Separate but equal."
-- President Donald Trump describing the relationship between the Air Force and his proposed new branch, the Space Force. | | | WHAT'S GOING ON AT THE TEXAS BORDER | | CNN's Daniella Diaz went back to her hometown of McAllen, Texas -- this time with a group of lawmakers to follow them along as they toured immigration detention facilities. Here's a reporter's notebook from on the ground:
It's never easy to return to my hometown of McAllen to cover news that isn't necessarily representative of the area. I'm grateful to CNN for letting me tell the story of these immigrants who have been separated from their children under this "zero tolerance" rule in the administration.
It was hard to listen to Rep. Ben Ray Lujan discuss what it was like to be in Casa Presidente, a detention center for children under the age of 12. While the White House has signaled it's using separating children from their parents to negotiate with Democrats on the issue of immigration, Democrats and some Republicans are upset with how it's being handled -- with many critics calling the practice inhumane.
Today I watched Lujan get emotional while he talked about holding a baby named Roger, who is 8 months old, at Casa Presidente. Congress is working on a fix, but it's unclear what will actually happen as Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen doubled down on the policy.
Read more from Daniella's reporting here. Also, read about what's inside one of these detention centers; and read CNN's story by Stephen Collinson and Lauren Fox about why all this matters right now. | | The audio of a border patrol agent joking as children who have been separated from their families cry in the background is equal parts heartbreaking and rage-inducing
Maureen Dowd has some thoughts on the current state of politics in Washington
What The Villages can tell us about Donald Trump and 2020 via Politico's Michael Grunwald
Former Obama aide Dan Pfeiffer writes about what his time at the White House taught him -- and why it matters now
History -- as it happens
Thank you to Shea Serrano for shining a spotlight on the greatness of Diana Taurasi | | | Surprise! Beyonce and Jay Z dropped an album over the weekend called "Everything is Love." Here's how you can listen if you don't have Tidal. | | | Today's topic: Trump's popularity is trending upward, as Chris noted above. | | | Point readers -- don't forget to ask Chris one question about the news this week that you need more clarity on. Submit your weekly question to saba.hamedy@cnn.com by Wednesday at noon ET. Chris will pick one reader's question to answer on Friday, and we'll include the response in the newsletter and on CNN Politics' Instagram story. | | | FBI 'DOUBLE STANDARD' IN CLINTON, TRUMP INVESTIGATIONS? | | | A Senate panel on Monday heard testimony about the DOJ inspector general's report on the handling of the Clinton email probe. CNN's Jeremy Herb reports: "Special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation into President Donald Trump and Russia was effectively on trial Monday at the first congressional hearing into the Justice Department watchdog report that faulted key decisions in the FBI's handling of the 2016 Hillary Clinton email investigation. While the inspector general report last week did not probe the FBI's handling of the Russia investigation, Mueller's investigation loomed over the attacks that came from both Republicans and Democrats over the Clinton investigation. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley charged that the Justice Department has a 'serious credibility problem,' ticking off a number of purported differences between how the agency handled the Clinton and the Trump probes as a 'double-standard.'" Read more here. | | CNN's Caroline Kenny rounded up what you might have missed in 2020 news this weekend: - This past weekend was chock full of potential 2020 candidates traveling the country, making speeches and getting their names out there. Former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander made a trip to the ever-important early primary state of Iowa for a sixteenth time, where he spoke at the Iowa Democratic Party annual convention.
- Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan also addressed statewide Democrats, this time in Indianapolis at the Hoosier Hospitality Dinner during the state party's annual convention. Also speaking at the Indiana Democratic Party convention this weekend? Former Attorney General Eric Holder.
- Former Housing and Urban Development administrator Julian Castro was in his home state of Texas, appearing alongside several of his Democratic colleagues at a stop on a tour of Customs and Border Protection processing detention centers on the US-Mexico border. Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley, another prospective 2020 candidate, was visiting the centers as well for a second time in recent weeks.
- Finally, Buzzfeed published an in-depth look at former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick's thinking process concerning a potential presidential run next cycle.
| | POMPEO TALKS US-NORTH KOREAN RELATIONSHIP | | | CNN's Laura Koran reports: "Addressing the Detroit Economic Club, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Kim Jong Un 'has made very clear his commitment to fully denuclearize his country' in exchange for promises from the United States, including altering the Korean armistice agreement. He also hinted he may return to Pyongyang soon. Asked whether there will be another leaders' summit between President Donald Trump and Kim, Pompeo said it's 'hard to know.' 'There's a lot of work between here and there,' said Pompeo. 'My team is already doing it. I'll likely travel back before too terribly long.'" Read more here. | | We'd love to share our other newsletters with you. Follow this link for daily coverage of the world's top stories, savvy market insights, an insider's look into the media, and more. Our authors for The Point are Chris Cillizza and Saba Hamedy. Send your tips and thoughts via email to Chris or Saba. Follow on Twitter: Chris and Saba. | | | | | | |
No comments:
Post a Comment