Trump’s approval rating on the economy tanks in new poll

President Donald Trump’s approval rating on his handling of the U.S. economy has dropped dramatically in the last month, according to a new poll.

The poll, from Quinnipiac University, shows that only 44% of people approve of the way Trump is handling the U.S. economy, compared with 52% from the month before. 

Trump’s stewardship of the economy had been one of the only bright spots for the president in recent polls. The dramatic drop is an ominous sign for his reelection prospects.  

The results come just after the release of what Trump called a “spectacular” jobs report, which revealed that the economy in June added 4.8 million jobs, a figure that surpassed projections.

But his rival, former Vice President Joe Biden, has suggested that the jobs report wasn’t reflective of the reality for many Americans.

“Make no mistake, we’re still in a deep, deep job hole because Donald Trump has so badly bungled the response to coronavirus,” the presumptive Democratic nominee said. “For everyone whose job hasn’t come back, for everyone who doesn’t own stock, who can’t get a sweetheart loan through connections, does this feel like a victory?”

Meanwhile, 50% of those surveyed say that Biden would do a better job handling the economy than Trump, while 45% said he would not. The poll was conducted between July 9 and July 13. There were 1,273 respondents, and the poll had a margin of error of +/- 2.8 percentage points.

New polling released Wednesday by CNBC/Change Research found that only 46% of likely voters approved of Trump’s handling of the economy, versus 54% who disapproved.

The poll also showed a dramatic shift over the past two weeks in how independent voters grade the president’s handling of the economy. In late June, the same poll showed Trump’s economic approval ratings underwater by eight points with independents. Two weeks later, that deficit had swelled to a 28-point deficit, with 64% of independents telling pollsters they disapprove of how Trump is handling the economy.

Overall, Biden is leading the president by a wide margin nationally and in critical swing states in most recent polls as the campaign season heads into its final phase. 

The RealClearPolitics national polling average shows Biden, with 48.3% voter support, substantially ahead of Trump, with 40.2% support.

Trump also received dismal marks for his handling of the U.S. response to the coronavirus. The Quinnipiac poll shows that only 35% of voters approved of his response, compared with 62% who indicated disapproval. This rating is the lowest he’s received since March, according to a press release from Quinnipiac University.

More than half the respondents, or 59%, said Biden would handle the pandemic well, compared with 35% who said the opposite. 

The coronavirus has roiled markets, forcing thousands of small businesses nationwide to shutter in an effort to limit movement and contain the virus. 

The coronavirus outbreak has spread worldwide, with more than 13.3 million confirmed cases and over 578,600 deaths, according to data from Johns Hopkins University. The U.S. has had at least 3.4 million cases and 136,400 deaths, according to the latest tallies.

— CNBC’s Christina Wilkie contributed to this report.

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/07/15/trumps-approval-rating-on-the-economy-tanks-in-new-quinnipiac-poll.html