DEMS/POLLS/TRADE WARS/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “President Donald Trump’s trade wars may be something he believes in, but it doesn’t seem to be a political winner. Unlike many issues on which Trump has seesawed on over the years, Trump has been generally consistent in his protectionist stance on trade. He seemed to use that to his advantage in the 2016 election, during which he went after Democrat Hillary Clinton, who tended to have more of a free trade record. Polling during his presidency suggests, however, that most Americans don’t really care about trade policy and have turned against Trump’s argument for a protectionist trade policy. Trump, of course, is hoping to get his job approval rating up. It’s generally been stuck in the high 30s to low 40s. The problem for Trump is that Americans typically regard trade as one of the least important issues. Just 31% of Americans told Gallup late last year that it was an extremely important issue for the President and Congress to take up in 2019. That was tied for the lowest of any issue. The Pew Research Center found that only 39% said global trade was a top policy for them in 2019. That was the lowest of any issue polled.”
–Harry Enten, “Americans have turned against Trump on trade,” CNN Politics, CNN.com, May 30, 2019 12:25 am