Trump's approval rating revealed in poll as Americans question president's mind
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics, US News
Mia Williams
Featured Image Credit: (Photo by Jim WATSON / AFP via Getty Images)
Topics: Donald Trump, Politics, US News
The president's latest approval rating has been revealed in a new poll as Americans, including members of his own party, continue to question his cognitive health.
Many fear that Donald Trump has bitten off more than he can chew with the war in Iran, but it's not the only reason that people have raised concerns about his mental sharpness in recent weeks.
Numerous Republican Party members have spoken out against the 79-year-old after he posted an AI image that appeared to depict himself as Jesus, which he later clarified was intended to be seen as him being a doctor - to which many an eyebrow was raised.
The updated approval rating also comes after a quarrel with Pope Leo XIV, who has publicly criticised the US for waging war on Iran.
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After receiving backlash from hundreds of conservatives, Trump reiterated to reporters on Friday (April 17) that he has 'a right to disagree with the Pope', after stating that he is 'weak on crime' and 'terrible for foreign policy'.
But it seems that the president is eager to get Christian conservatives back on side, as he was seen at a marathon Bible reading on Tuesday evening (April 21).
Trump read from 2 Chronicles as part of an 'America Reads the Bible' event at the Museum of the Bible in Washington.
But despite the attempt to seemingly prove to his formerly loyal supporters that religion remains important to him, a six-day public opinion poll, conducted by Reuters/Ipsos, has revealed his most recent approval rating.
Trump enjoyed his highest approval rating of his current term shortly after he was sworn into office again on January 20, where it stood at 47 percent.
But according to the latest stats, only 36 percent of Americans approve of Trump's performance, as of April 2026.
The president has been under increasing pressure to end the war with Iran, which his administration began alongside Israel in February, as the price of oil around the world has risen to record highs.
The report also revealed that only 26 percent of Americans said they consider Trump 'even-tempered'.
Between threatening to wipe out an entire civilization and falling out with some of the US' closest historical allies, including the UK, it's safe to say the president's mental capacity has been called into question.
In early 2025, Trump was asked during an interview with the New York Post if he had plans to kick Prince Harry out of the US amid ongoing questions about his immigration status.
"I don’t want to do that. I’ll leave him alone. He’s got enough problems with his wife," he said. "She’s terrible."
Ahead of a 2025 meeting in the Oval Office, the Ukrainian president wore a black, long-sleeved polo shirt featuring the Ukrainian trident - after which he'd vowed not to wear a suit until Russia's invasion of his country would come to an end.
Trump jokily said as he greeted Zelenskyy: "Oh look, you’re all dressed up."
When the US was involved in that dispute over Greenland, as Trump wanted the land to be America’s, he claimed that Denmark didn't have the 'right' to the country.
Well, it's clear Trump didn't realize that Greenland is a self-governing, autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, and has been part of Denmark for 600 years.
Again in 2025, Trump - who sold branded plastic straws during his 2020 election campaign - said paper straws 'don't work' and 'disgustingly' dissolve when being used.
"These things don’t work," he said. "I’ve had them many times, and on occasion, they break, they explode."
During his address to Congress in March 2025, Trump accused the Biden administration of spending $8 million on 'transgender mice' experiments.
PBS later fact-checked this and concluded that this claim was false, with PBS News Hour's White House correspondent Laura Barrón-López saying 'the idea that scientists are making mice transgender is false'.
"These experiments were studying the effects of gender-affirming hormones on asthma and on whether gender-affirming hormones increase breast cancer risk," Barrón-López explained.
On his first day in office for his second term of presidency in January 2025, Trump infamously signed an executive order to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America to honor 'American greatness'.
It's important to note that the change applies only to US federal communications and maps.
During his 2024 election campaign, Trump wildly called for 'one real rough, nasty' and 'violent day' of police retaliation in order to eradicate crime 'immediately' - which many drew comparisons to the thriller film The Purge.
"One rough hour — and I mean real rough — the word will get out and it will end immediately, you know? It will end immediately," Trump said to the crowd in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Another moment during his 2024 election campaign saw Trump take aim at his opponent, former vice president Kamala Harris.
He told his supporters: "We have to tell Kamala Harris that you’ve had enough, that you just can’t take it anymore. We can’t stand you, you’re a s**t vice president. The worst."