Trump's approval rating on immigration and government spending has slipped, new AP-NORC poll finds

WASHINGTON (AP) — Only about one-quarter of U.S. adults say that President Donald Trump's policies have helped them since he took office, according to a new poll that finds underwhelming marks for him on key issues, including the economy, immigration, government spending and health care.

In fact, the Republican president fails to earn majority approval on any of the issues included in the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. He's even slipped slightly since earlier this year on immigration, which has consistently been a strength for him in his second term.

And while a majority of Americans do see Trump as at least “somewhat” capable of getting things done following the passage of his sprawling budget bill, fewer believe he understands the problems facing people like them.

Roughly half of U.S. adults report that Trump’s policies have “done more to hurt” them since his second term began six months ago, the survey found. About 2 in 10 say his policies have “not made a difference” in their lives, with about one-quarter saying his policies have "done more to help” them.

The vast majority of Democrats and about half of independents say Trump’s policies have had a negative impact, while even many Republicans say they haven't seen positive effects.

“As it sits today, I don’t know his policies have made much of a difference in my day-to-day life,” said Landon Lindemer, a 29-year-old logistics manager from suburban Atlanta who voted for Trump three times.

Lindemer said he generally approves of Trump's job performance, even if he has concerns about the massive spending in the big bill the president signed into law on July 4.

“I’m not sold it’s really going to help," he said.

The mixed reviews on Trump's policies come as he struggles to follow through on key campaign promises, including lowering costs for working-class Americans, preserving popular social welfare programs like Medicaid, ending foreign wars and lowering government spending.

Inflation rose last month to its highest level since February as Trump’s sweeping tariffs push up the cost of everything from groceries and clothes to furniture and appliances. Separately, Trump’s budget bill included Medicaid cuts that will lead to 11.8 million more Americans becoming uninsured and add $3.3 trillion to the national debt, the Congressional Budget Office estimated.

At the same time, violent conflicts still rage in Israel and Ukraine.

Overall, the new poll finds that about 4 in 10 U.S. adults approve of Trump's job performance, a figure that's in line with his June approval but historically weak compared with recent presidents. Closer to half of U.S. adults approved of President Joe Biden and President Barack Obama at roughly the same point in their Democratic presidencies, according to polls from AP-NORC and Gallup, although Biden's approval rating declined in the second half of his first year and remained low for the rest of his time in office.

Poll respondent Bailey Neill, a 42-year-old attorney from San Antonio, said he was “terrified” of Trump.

Neill, a Democrat who describes himself as a “student of history,” cast Trump as an authoritarian who has followed the controversial playbook outlined in Project 2025, a conservative blueprint for transformative changes across the federal government that Trump tried to distance himself from before the November election.

“In terms of my day-to-day life, I really haven’t seen a change, except for the general fear and anxiety I feel at a core level,” Neill said.

Trump earned less than 50% approval on every issue included in the new AP-NORC poll, including the economy, government spending, trade, taxes, immigration, health care and his handling of the conflict in the Middle East.

Only 43% of U.S. adults said they approved of his handling of immigration, down slightly from the 49% who supported his work on the issue back in March.

Trump also appears to have lost some support for his spending decisions. About 4 in 10 Americans approve of Trump's handling of government spending, down from 46% in March.

On the economy overall, roughly 4 in 10 adults approve of Trump's performance, which hasn't changed measurably in the last few months.

Timothy Dwyer, of Dyersburg, Tennessee, a 26-year-old self-described independent who works in retail sales and leans Republican, said Trump's work on the economy, especially his tariffs, has “really sucked.”

“He’s turned us into a toilet and has absolutely made us the laughing stock of the world,” Dwyer said of Trump's trade policies, while also lamenting the president's work on reducing grocery prices and health care.

Despite such criticism, most U.S. adults think Trump is at least somewhat effective.

About 6 in 10 say “capable of getting things done” describes Trump at least “somewhat” well. And about half of U.S. adults say the same about the phrases “good negotiator” or “capable of handling a crisis."

That doesn't mean they believe Trump can see things from their perspective.

Most Americans, 56%, say “understands the problems facing people like you” is a phrase that describes Trump “not very well” or “not well at all.” His numbers on the question are relatively weak even among those in his party: Just about half of Republicans say he understands the problems facing people like them “extremely” or “very” well.

“I think he’s doing quite well. He could be doing a hell of a lot worse,” said poll respondent Levi Fischer, of Marshalltown, Iowa, who voted for Trump three times.

Still, Fischer acknowledged that he hasn't seen the economy improve as quickly as he hoped. Trump's policies, he said, “don't make much difference in my life.”

Peoples reported from New York.

The AP-NORC poll of 1,437 adults was conducted July 10-14, using a sample drawn from NORC’s probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.

President Donald Trump holds his signed his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump poses for a photo after signing his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Washington, surrounded by members of Congress, including House Speaker Mike Johnson of La., left. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony to sign the "Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act," in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

President Donald Trump arriving before speaking at a ceremony to sign the "Halt All Lethal Trafficking of Fentanyl Act," in the East Room of the White House, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

President Donald Trump holds his signed his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting with Bahrain's Crown Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa in the Oval Office of the White House, Wednesday, July 16, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

President Donald Trump poses for a photo after signing his signature bill of tax breaks and spending cuts at the White House, Friday, July 4, 2025, in Washington, surrounded by members of Congress, including House Speaker Mike Johnson of La., left. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

PARIS (AP) — A Paris court is to rule on Monday in a case involving 10 people accused of cyberbullying French first lady Brigitte Macron by spreading false online claims about her gender and sexuality, allegations her daughter said damaged her health and family life.

The defendants, eight men and two women aged 41 to 60, are accused of posting “numerous malicious comments” falsely claiming that President Emmanuel Macron ’s wife was born a man and linking the 24-year age gap with her husband to pedophilia. Some of the posts were viewed tens of thousands of times.

Brigitte Macron did not attend the two-day trial in October.

Her daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, testified about what she described as the “deterioration” of her mother’s life since the online harassment intensified. “She cannot ignore the horrible things said about her,” Auzière told the court. She said the impact has extended to the entire family, including Macron’s grandchildren.

Defendant Delphine Jegousse, 51, who is known as Amandine Roy and describes herself as a medium and an author, is considered as having played a major role in spreading the rumor after she released a four-hour video on her YouTube channel in 2021.

The X account of Aurélien Poirson-Atlan, 41, known as Zoé Sagan on social media, was suspended in 2024 after his name was cited in several judicial investigations.

Other defendants include an elected official, a teacher and a computer scientist. Several told the court their comments were intended as humor or satire and said they did not understand why they were being prosecuted. They face up to two years in prison if convicted.

The case follows years of conspiracy theories falsely alleging that Brigitte Macron was born under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux, which is actually the name of her brother. The Macrons have also filed a defamation suit in the United States against conservative influencer Candace Owens.

The Macrons, who have been married since 2007, first met at the high school where he was a student and she was a teacher. Brigitte Macron, 24 years her husband’s senior, was then called Brigitte Auzière, a married mother of three.

Emmanuel Macron, 48, has been France’s president since 2017.

FILE - French President's wife Brigitte Macron arrives ahead of the ceremony outside "La Belle Equipe" bar, Thursday Nov. 13, 2025 in Paris as part of ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of terrorist attacks. (Ludovic Marin, Pool photo via AP, File)