Trump’s best path forward

(President) Trump’s poll results illustrate his power and its limits. As David Byler notes on Real Clear Politics, despite a “roller coaster of events,” Trump’s job approval has stayed stable at about 40 percent for more than two months.

That fact, he says, has pollsters debating the whys and offering various theories, including partisan polarization and the possibility that 40 percent is Trump’s floor.

Yet a number within the numbers is revealing. On economic issues, Byler reports the average of recent polls gives Trump a 44.7 percent approval rating, close to the 46 percent of the popular vote he won last year.

That strikes me as the obvious path forward for Trump. His White House reset must focus relentlessly on the very issues that got him elected — his America First agenda, especially jobs, jobs, jobs.

In fairness, the problem isn’t that the president hasn’t talked about that agenda enough. He often does, boasting about stock market record highs, falling unemployment and increased confidence. His executive orders and regulation cuts amount to low-hanging fruit that are giving businesses a boost.

The problem is that Trump too often steps on his own good news, and feeds the media beast the scandal and chaos news it wants. That dynamic is putting a ceiling on his popularity that is close to his floor.

To move Republicans, Trump has to first get out of his own way. His political power in Washington will grow with his job-approval numbers around the country.

And if he really keeps himself on the straight and narrow, Trump might be able to peel off a few Democrats who fear his popularity in their states. That was Trump’s plan when he took office, so getting it done would be a very big deal.

— New York Post columnist Michael Goodwin,

writing Aug. 1.