America is evenly split on Donald Trump's presidential transition


Halfway between his election and inauguration, opinion over how Donald Trump is handling his presidential transition is split down the middle, with 48 percent of U.S. adults approving and 48 percent disapproving, according to a new Gallup poll. There was a partisan split to the poll, conducted Dec. 7-11, with only 17 percent of Democrats and 46 percent of independents approving of Trump's transition — including Cabinet picks, tweets, and victory rallies — versus 86 percent of Republicans. Still, 48 percent is low by recent standards: At this point before their first terms, President Obama's approval was 75 percent, George W. Bush's was 65 percent, and Bill Clinton's was 67 percent, Gallup said.
The historically low approval rating doesn't bode well for Trump's early approval ratings, Gallup notes: "Transition approval ratings taken in December and January have tended to be higher than presidents' initial job approval rating after they were inaugurated," says Gallup's Jeffrey M. Jones. "If the recent historical pattern holds, Trump's initial job approval rating after he takes office could be in the low 40 percent range. To date, the lowest initial job approval rating in Gallup's records is 51 percent, held by both Ronald Reagan in 1981 and George H.W. Bush in 1989."
A Pew poll last week also found Trump with a below-average transition approval rating — 40 percent approval of his Cabinet picks and other high-level appointments (versus 71 percent of Obama, 58 percent for George W. Bush, 64 percent for Bill Clinton, and 59 percent for George H.W. Bush), and 41 percent for how he has done in explaining his policies and plans (versus 72 percent for Obama, 50 percent for W., 62 percent for Clinton, and 65 percent for George H.W. Bush). This doesn't mean that Trump will end up an unpopular president, of course, just that he has his work cut out for him. The Gallup poll reached 1,028 adults and had a 4 percent margin of sampling error.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Taking aim at Venezuela’s autocrat
Feature The Trump administration is ramping up military pressure on Nicolás Maduro. Is he a threat to the U.S.?
-
Comey indictment: Is the justice system broken?
Feature U.S. attorney Lindsey Halligan has indicted former FBI Director James Comey on charges of lying and obstructing Congress
-
Government shuts down amid partisan deadlock
Feature As Democrats and Republicans clash over health care and spending, the shutdown leaves 750,000 federal workers in limbo
-
Judge bars Trump’s National Guard moves in Oregon
Speed Read In an emergency hearing, a federal judge blocked President Donald Trump from sending National Guard troops into Portland
-
Museum head ousted after Trump sword gift denial
Speed Read Todd Arrington, who led the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum, denied the Trump administration a sword from the collection as a gift for King Charles
-
Trump declares ‘armed conflict’ with drug cartels
speed read This provides a legal justification for recent lethal military strikes on three alleged drug trafficking boats
-
Supreme Court rules for Fed’s Cook in Trump feud
Speed Read Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook can remain in her role following Trump’s attempts to oust her
-
Judge rules Trump illegally targeted Gaza protesters
Speed Read The Trump administration’s push to arrest and deport international students for supporting Palestine is deemed illegal
-
Trump: US cities should be military ‘training grounds’
Speed Read In a hastily assembled summit, Trump said he wants the military to fight the ‘enemy within’ the US
-
US government shuts down amid health care standoff
Speed Read Democrats said they won’t vote for a deal that doesn’t renew Affordable Care Act health care subsidies
-
YouTube to pay Trump $22M over Jan. 6 expulsion
Speed Read The president accused the company of censorship following the suspension of accounts post-Capitol riot