Worldwide confidence in Trump running low

WASHINGTON — The reviews from around the globe are in and they show scant confidence outside the United States in President Donald Trump’s ability to do the right thing on international affairs, with fewer than 3 in 10 respondents expressing confidence, according to a Pew Research Center survey of attitudes toward Trump in more than three dozen countries.

Most of those surveyed also disapprove of Trump’s major policies, including his promise to erect a physical wall along the border between the U.S. and Mexico — which was opposed by 94 percent of Mexican respondents — and temporarily halting travel from six mostly Muslim countries.

More than half see the U.S. president as a strong leader, but larger majorities described Trump as arrogant, intolerant or dangerous.

Pew has produced the survey annually since 2002, starting with the first term of George W. Bush. The edition released Monday is the first since Trump took office in January.

A median of 22 percent across all countries surveyed expressed confidence that Trump will do the right thing when it comes to international affairs. That’s a steep drop from the closing years of Trump’s predecessor, Barack Obama, when a median of 64 percent expressed confidence in Obama’s leadership. Bush’s ratings fell after the U.S. invaded Iraq in 2003, hitting a median of 27 percent near the end of his term.

Among the 37 countries Pew surveyed, Trump scored higher marks than Obama in two: Israel (56 percent) and Russia (53 percent). Trump’s largest base of support comes from Filipinos (69 percent).

The results are based on telephone and face-toface interviews conducted among 40,447 respondents in all regions of the world between Feb. 16 and May 8.