According to a CBS News survey released on Sunday, President Donald Trump has an overall approval rating of 50%, with the same percentage disapproving of his performance. His approval rating has dropped one percentage point since last month and is a few points lower than when he returned to the White House two months ago. However, his approval rating remains above what he received at any point during his first term, according to the latest poll.
Despite a week dominated by fallout from Trump administration officials discussing U.S. military plans on the Signal messaging app—an action 76% of those surveyed deemed inappropriate—this strong performance persists. On other widely criticized policies, Trump’s handling of inflation remains unpopular, with 56% disapproving. His overall economic management has also dipped into negative territory, garnering a 52% disapproval rate after a positive rating the previous month.
However, these negative views are counterbalanced by a more favorable stance on immigration. In this area, 53% approve of Trump’s performance, and 58% support his policy on deporting illegal residents. Regarding his initiative to reduce the federal workforce, opinions are split evenly, with half of Americans in favor and half opposed. Many critics of the cuts argue that these reductions will affect important programs and services, a concern shared by 62% of independent voters.
Trump said he has no plans to fire anyone over the Signal national security group chat incident, addressing the issue in a phone interview with NBC News on Saturday. “I don’t fire people because of fake news and witch hunts,” Trump told the network during the brief conversation.
On Monday, The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg revealed that he was accidentally added to a national security group chat where senior Trump administration officials were discussing airstrikes in Yemen. The March 15 chat included key figures such as Vice President J.D. Vance, National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and other members of President Trump’s inner circle.
Asked by NBC News on Saturday if he still has confidence in Hegseth and Waltz, Trump replied: “I do.” Continuing, Trump added: “I think it’s just a witch hunt and the fake news, like you, talk about it all the time, but it’s just a witch hunt, and it shouldn’t be talked [about].” He added: “We had a tremendously successful strike. We struck very hard and very lethal. And nobody wants to talk about that. All they want to talk about is nonsense. It’s fake news.”