The public opinion regarding Donald Trump’s State of the Union address has finally come to light, with a poll revealing how the President’s speech fared in front of his audience. His addresses to Congress largely fetched favorable remarks from speech-watchers, arguably due to the spectators’ pool having 13 percentage points more Republican viewers than normal. However, despite having a more friendly audience, Trump’s speech drew its fair share of criticism, especially regarding his take on the cost of living.
CNN shares poll after Donald Trump’s State of the Union address
On Tuesday, February 24, the two-time US President gave the second State of the Union address of his political career, ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
A CNN poll conducted by SSRS during the event divulged that approximately two-thirds of the audience present gave a somewhat favorable reaction to Donald Trump’s speech, with 38% giving it an extremely positive rating. This response is actually better than the points he scored during his address to Congress last year, but pales in comparison to the ratings of his first-term speeches.
Before Trump’s address, an estimated 54% of speech-watchers agreed that his policies would benefit the nation. After his speech, the CNN poll revealed that the percentage had risen to 64%. Similarly, a healthy 44% believed that the businessman-turned-politician was focusing on the right issues before the address, with the number jumping to 54% afterwards.
However, a whopping 45% of the Republican-dominated audience admitted that Trump was giving too little attention to the cost of living after hearing what he had to say. Moreover, 40% relayed that they had no confidence that the President would make things more affordable.
Additionally, according to the poll, listeners were evenly split on Donald Trump’s actions regarding tariffs. His economic and immigration policies garnered a much better response, with 62% agreeing that his strategies are in line with the nation’s best interest.
Meanwhile, 45% expressed full faith in Trump’s leadership, with 43% backing the 79-year-old politician for using US military power responsibly. As for his stance on Iran, 38% noted that he would be able to deal with the situation appropriately.
Despite the overall positive response in the poll, Donald Trump’s State of the Union address should do little to sway public opinion in his favor, given that the speech-watchers mostly consisted of people who already resonate with his ideologies.
Notably, in another CNN poll conducted a few days before Trump’s speech, his approval rating stood at a meager 36%.
