More give Trump an F than any other grade for first 100 days, poll finds

Twice as many people said President Trump deserves a grade of F rather than an A for how he’s handled his first 100 days in office, according to a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll.

Forty-five percent said Trump deserves the failing mark, compared to 23% who would pass him with flying colors. It’s understandable that partisans would have strongly polarized views of the president, but it’s also notable that half of independents said he deserves an F, and only a slim majority of Republicans would give him an A.

The poll of 1,439 adults, conducted from April 21-23, finds Trump’s political standing in decline since he was sworn in for a second term. It’s driven by views of how he’s handling the economy and tariffs, but a slim majority now also disapproves of how he’s handling immigration, which had been a relative strength.

Trump’s overall approval rating is down to 42%, including just 36% among independents. For context, when looking at Gallup’s numbers back to Harry Truman, this would be the second-worst approval rating for any president at the 100-day mark in those 80 years. The lowest? First-term Trump by a point.

His economic numbers are even worse — just 39% approve of how Trump is handling the economy, his worst score ever, including during his first term.

Nearly two-thirds believe grocery prices will go up, almost 6-in-10 said placing tariffs on imports from other countries hurts the U.S. economy, and a strong majority said Trump bears responsibility for the current economic situation and it is not the result of an economy he inherited.

The survey has a margin of error of +/-3.3 percentage points, meaning results could be about 3 points lower or higher. It was conducted by phone (both cellphone and landline), text and online panels in both English and Spanish.

A majority disapproves of how Trump is handling almost all aspects of the job

Trump is down a net of 7 points in his approval rating from last month, with 53% now disapproving.

Reflecting the failing grade a plurality gave him, 45% strongly disapprove of how he’s handling the job.

And a majority disapproves of nearly all aspects his performance, from tariffs (58%) and the economy (55%) to foreign policy (53%) and immigration (52%).

Almost half also said they disapprove of how the administration has handled the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the man who was deported to El Salvador despite a court order saying he should not be deported and the Supreme Court saying the administration should “facilitate” his return.

The administration says he is a gang member. A judge said the evidence supporting that is flimsy. Just 35% said they approve of how the administration has handled the case.

Loading…

By a 51%-42% margin, respondents said they think Trump has put the country on the wrong path.

By a 49%-32% margin, they said Trump’s policies have negatively impacted them including two-thirds of Democrats and half of independents.

A lack of confidence in the economy

Arguably, nothing helped Trump win more in the 2024 presidential election than his promise to bring prices down and many Americans’ nostalgia for the pre-COVID economy.

But 64% now believe grocery prices will increase. That’s up from 57% last month.

When it comes to tariffs on imports from other countries, 57% said they will hurt the economy. Two-thirds of Republicans, on the other hand, said they believe they will help, so Trump’s base appears to be continuing to give him a long leash.

About 1-in-5 said they have changed their buying habits by speeding up some purchases because of the tariffs; 28% said they have delayed buying some things.

By a 60%-39% margin, respondents said this is Trump’s economy and not the result of something he inherited. That includes 61% of independents and a third of Republicans.

Most believe Trump is moving too fast and want him to obey court orders

An increasing majority — 61% — said Trump is rushing to make changes — up 5 points from last month — while about 4-in-10 think he’s doing what needs to be done.

The overwhelming majority — 85% — said Trump should follow court orders, even if he doesn’t like them.

Three-quarters of Democrats strongly agree with that sentiment, while only a quarter of Republicans do.

Elon Musk has grown more unpopular 

A majority — 54% — have an unfavorable opinion of the man, one of the world’s richest, who is leading the Trump administration’s government-cutting effort, DOGE, the informal Department of Government Efficiency.

That’s up four points from last month. Just 34% have a favorable opinion of Musk, down from 39% last month.

Similarly, 36% have a favorable opinion of DOGE more broadly.

Musk’s omnipresent role in the Trump administration may be coming to a close by the end of next month. That’s when his informal governmental advisory position expires — and amid a 71% drop in his company Tesla’s profits, Musk said last week he would be spending less time devoted to DOGE soon.