Amy Walter: “Republicans Aren’t Abandoning Donald Trump, But They’re Just Not As Enthusiastic About Him”
PBS NEWSHOUR: NPR’s Tamara Keith and Amy Walter of the Cook Political Report with Amy Walter join Nick Schifrin to discuss the latest political news, including new cracks in Trump’s relationship with GOP leaders on Capitol Hill opened by the Iran war.
NICK SCHIFRIN, PBS NEWSHOUR: “PBS News Hour”/NPR/Marist poll released last week found the president with the lowest approval rating of his second term, 36 percent, only 33 percent approving of his handling of the economy, a new low for him as president. And 78 percent of Americans say gas prices are straining their household budget. How much of this is actual pressure? AMY WALTER, THE COOK POLITICAL REPORT: So, here’s where this Republican rift is really interesting. As we have been discussing and you know very well, there’s definitely a rift ideologically on Capitol Hill between those maybe who are more hawkish, who would like to see the United States continue down the path they were going on militarily and others who did not want to see that. But, fundamentally, politically, if you’re a Republican up for reelection in a tough district, here’s a number you have been seeing since the war started. The president’s handling of the economy, the net unfavorable has gone up by about 10 points. His net unfavorable on inflation has gone up close to 20 points. That is a problem for you as a Republican running for reelection. So this war ending, theoretically, is going to help bring those numbers back to hopefully a reasonable place if you’re a Republican running for reelection. But the challenge right now for Republicans in the sort of intraparty challenge, beyond this question of how hard do they push back Donald Trump, who still remains the kingmaker in the party, but is the lack of enthusiasm among the base. And the one thing in that Marist poll that I looked at is people who identify as Republican, how strongly do they approve of Trump versus how many are just like, yes, he’s OK, he’s fine, I approve. The strongly approved number since a year ago at this time among Republicans has dropped like close to 12 points on net. And so what you’re seeing, is Republicans aren’t abandoning Donald Trump, but they’re just not as enthusiastic about him, which means they may not be as enthusiastic to show up to vote.
