Democracy at a Crossroads
Trump's First 100 Days
Tomorrow marks the end of the first 100 days of Donald Trump’s second presidency.
To assess where things stand, PRRI checked in with Americans to see what they think of what he’s done thus far. Their expansive survey and report releases this morning.
Find the whole report here, but read on for a summary of some of the key takeaways:
Consistent with other recent surveys, PRRI finds his approval ratings upside-down: 54% disapprove, with just 43% approving. (Trump has responded to his drop in favorability by suggesting pollsters be investigated for “election fraud.”)
A few more highlights from the PRRI data:
More than half of Americans agree that President Trump is “a dangerous dictator whose power should be limited.”
Fewer than half of Americans approve of his handling of immigration (48%), the economy (41%), and Russia’s war with Ukraine (40%).
Only around one-third of Americans view Vance favorably; (35%), half view him unfavorably (50%).
Most Americans (58%) view Musk unfavorably. Musk holds less favorable views among Republicans than Trump, 71% vs. 83%. (This might be a good moment to pause and remember that Musk holds no elected office.)
While 52% think Trump is “a dangerous dictator,” 44% think he “is a strong leader who should be given the power he needs to restore America’s greatness.” (87% of Democrats agree with the first statement; 81% of Republicans agree with the second.)
A few more findings:
Very few Americans endorse expanding the scope of executive power, whether that includes suspending congressional elections or allowing presidents to serve more than two terms; few Americans think that presidents should be above the law.
• Just 17% of Americans agree that if Trump cannot get our country out of crisis in the next year, he should postpone the 2026 midterm elections for Congress or the U.S. Constitution should be amended to allow presidents to serve more than two terms in office, although Republicans are three times as likely as Democrats to agree with the second statement (27% vs. 8%).
• Nine in ten Americans (89%) agree that no elected official, including the president, should be above the law.
• At the same time, two in ten Americans (20%) agree that “because things have gotten so far off track, we need a president who is willing to break some laws if that’s what it takes to save the country;” around three in ten Americans who most trust Fox News (32%) and far-right news sources (30%) agree.
Americans remain strongly committed to our system of checks and balances, strongly disagreeing that the president should ignore the actions of Congress or the Supreme Court.
• Nearly eight in ten Americans (78%) disagree with the statement “When decisions by Congress or the Supreme Court hold our country back, the president should be able to ignore them,” compared with only 18% who agree; Republicans are more than three times as likely as Democrats to agree (28% vs. 9%).
• Christian nationalism Adherents (41%) are more likely than Christian nationalism Sympathizers (27%), Skeptics (15%), and Rejecters (9%) to agree that if the country is being held back by decisions of Congress or the Supreme Court, the president should be able to ignore them.
With respect to diversity and inclusion, the majority of Americans believe efforts to increase diversity strengthen an organization’s workforce. Moreover, “eight in ten Americans (80%), including 91% of Democrats, 83% of independents, and 73% of Republicans, say they would prefer the U.S. to be a nation made up of people from all over the world, while just 15% say they would prefer the U.S. to be a nation primarily made up of people of western European heritage.”
(If you’re reading this before 10amET, click below to register for PRRI’s live webinar at 10 to discuss the findings. Participants include Melissa Deckman, Robby Jones, Joy Reid, and Sarah McCammon.)
And what about white evangelicals, you ask?
It’s been a tumultuous first 100 days, to say the least. What do white evangelicals make of all this?
To no one’s surprise, 3 in 4 white evangelicals (76%) approve of the job Trump is doing as president.
This is exactly what they voted for.
Only 25% of white evangelicals see Trump as a dangerous dictator; 73% think he’s a “strong leader who should be given the power he needs to restore America’s greatness.”
More than any other religious demographic, white evangelicals are likely to “agree with allowing the president to ignore Congress or the Supreme Court” (23%). The same number “agree with presidents breaking laws to save the country.” So much for law and order.
When it comes to the mass firing of federal employees, white evangelicals are by far the least likely to object (at only 34%). They are also most comfortable with the establishment of an Anti-Christian Bias Task Force, but even here, 66% object to a task force that focuses exclusively on discrimination against Christians rather than discrimination against all religions.
White evangelicals (56%) are also “the only religious group with majority support for militarized encampments for undocumented immigrants.” Let that sink in.
White evangelicals view Christian Nationalism more favorably than do other religious groups, and they are far more likely to perceive discrimination against Christians, and against white Americans, than are other religious groups.
White evangelicals are the least likely to hold very or somewhat favorable views of the Black Lives Matter movement, and most likely to believe efforts to increase diversity “almost always come at the expense of white people.”
White evangelicals are also the only religious demographic where fewer than half (47%) “would prefer the U.S. to be a nation made up of people belonging to a wide variety of religions.”
When we began The Convocation Unscripted last summer, we initially planned to do the podcast through the election and inauguration. When we saw what was coming, we decided to extend our commitment through the first 100 days. And what a first hundred days we’ve had. To mark this moment, we’ll be holding a special live Convocation Unscripted this Wednesday, the 100th day, at 5pm ET.
If you’d like to reserve a spot (it’s free but limited to the first 1,000 registrants), please click on the button below to register. Once you register, you’ll receive the zoom link for the event. Cameras and audio will only be on for The Convocation Unscripted team, but we’ll have the chat open for interaction, encouragement, and questions. We hope to see you there!
Thank you for hanging with us at the Convocation Unscripted for the first 100 days. We weren’t sure what to expect when we committed to seeing this through, but we’ve found our conversations—and especially your presence at our live recordings—to be a source of unexpected encouragement at a time when we’ve needed exactly that.
Thank you for your presence, and for your participation in this community.
"• Nearly eight in ten Americans (78%) disagree with the statement “When decisions by Congress or the Supreme Court hold our country back, the president should be able to ignore them,” compared with only 18% who agree; Republicans are more than three times as likely as Democrats to agree (28% vs. 9%)."
This (and many of the other findings in the survey) indicate the major problem: The Republican Party is completely derelict and the majority of Americans are not holding Republicans accountable for not doing what is their sworn duty. Johnson and Thune continue to cede the power of the purse so Trump and his minions continue to wreak havoc on the nation and the world. The Republicans refuse to impeach the criminal president for acts that are illegal and unconstitutional. The Republicans confirmed unacceptable and unqualified cabinet officers and continue to refuse to correct their grievous errors. And yet, the American electorate is seemingly unaware that the Congress should be held to account as much as Trump.
Unless and until the people wake up and realize that they need to completely crush the Republican Party nothing will change.
I am really struggling with my place in the church today. My non denominational church steers clear of anything “controversial” (political). The sermon last Sunday was on the Nicene Creed being a rope we can hang on to connecting the Christian community in tumultuous times. Yes-but what is causing this turmoil-we as a church need to address this, not just carefully wrap it up and shelve it.