President Trump’s approval rating is sliding downward as Americans increasingly say they disapprove of how he is handling the economy and the cost of living, according to new polling out Sunday. Americans told pollsters in recent surveys that they believe the president’s tariffs will make things worse, not better, for their bottom line. 

Despite Mr. Trump’s low approval ratings during his first term in office, Americans have in the past often given him positive marks on the economy, considering the high growth rates, low inflation, and strong employment numbers from the time he entered office in 2017 until the beginning of the Covid pandemic.

Now, however, Mr. Trump is finding no safe haven in his economic approval numbers. 

A CBS News survey released Sunday shows just 36 percent approve of the president’s handling of inflation, while 64 percent disapprove. On managing the economy as a whole, 41 percent approve of his job performance and 59 percent disapprove. 

His overall job approval, according to that CBS News survey, finds he has an approval rating of 43 percent and a disapproval rating of 56 percent among all voters. Among Republicans, however, the president enjoys a healthy 91 percent approval rating.

Another poll released on Sunday from NBC News paints a similar picture. That survey suggests that 57 percent of Americans disapprove of the president’s job performance, and roughly 43 percent give him positive marks.

The one bright spot for the president and the GOP in the NBC News survey is that Democrats are not faring any better among voters. According to that poll, 41 percent of respondents say they approve of the Democratic Party, while 59 percent disapprove. 

The Republican Party fares slightly better, with 43 percent saying they approve of the party’s job performance compared to 57 percent who disapprove. 

Mr. Trump’s approval rating remains historically low, compared to other presidents at this point in their first term, according to a survey history compiled by Gallup. While the president’s approval is up slightly by two points compared to the July CBS News poll — which found him with a 42 percent approval and 58 percent disapproval rating — Mr. Trump’s approval rating is down significantly from March, before his Liberation Day tariffs were announced. 

That survey found his approval rating at 50 percent and his disapproval rating at 50 percent. 

The NBC News pollsters found deep dissatisfaction among Americans with the president’s economic management. In that poll, 61 percent of respondents said they disapprove of how Mr. Trump is handling inflation and the cost of living, while just 39 percent approve of how he is dealing with the issue. 

On tariffs, Americans are expressing concern about how the import taxes will affect their financial situation. According to the CBS News poll, just 38 percent of respondents support the president’s broad use of tariff powers — which are now being challenged in court — while 62 percent oppose the imposition of these taxes. 

The same survey found that 71 percent of respondents believe prices will increase in the short term, compared to five percent who say prices will come down and 13 percent who say the tariffs will have no impact. 

Secretary Bessent defended the import taxes during an interview with “Meet the Press” on Sunday, saying that Americans will not pay additional costs despite rising wholesale prices and businesses saying they will be forced to increase prices. 

The show’s host Kristen Welker pointed the secretary to a Goldman Sachs study showing that 86 percent of tariff revenues were supplied by either American consumers or American companies. When asked if he would acknowledge that Americans are bearing the cost of the tariffs, Mr. Bessent simply responded, “No, I do not.” 

The treasury secretary told Ms. Welker that he “made a good career trading against Goldman Sachs.”

Americans’ view of the national economic picture is especially pessimistic, according to the CBS News poll, with only six percent of respondents saying the economy is “very good.” In total, 60 percent of Americans believe the economy is either very or fairly bad, while only 35 percent say things are either very or fairly good. 

It isn’t just Mr. Trump who could face some blowback from voters as he tries to tackle the cost of living crisis. Republicans in Congress are now facing an uphill battle to sell their economic records to their constituents ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. 

Last week, Republicans began a new effort to try to rebrand their signature legislative package, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The tax and spending legislation signed by the president in July is so far viewed overwhelmingly negatively by the broader electorate and among key voting blocs. 

The CBS News poll found that 39 percent of Americans approve of the legislation, while 61 percent disapprove. Just 30 percent of voters aged 29 or younger, 31 percent of self-described “moderates,” and 30 percent of independent voters hold a positive view of the legislation. Those approval ratings would make the OBBA one of the most unpopular pieces of legislation passed by Congress in recent memory. 

The 2010 Affordable Care Act and the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act — two laws that would power the opposition parties in the midterm elections following their enactment — were far more popular than the OBBA is today. 
According to Gallup, the ACA was only three points underwater when it was signed in 2010, with 45 approving of the law and 48 percent disapproving. In 2019, Gallup found that 40 percent approved of the 2017 tax bill by the time the law had taken full effect in April 2019, while 49 percent held a negative view of the legislation.