Trump’s approval rating gains ground in Pennsylvania, but not in national poll

Core supporters ‘hang in with him’

Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON – “Idiot,” “incompetent” and “liar” are the first words that came to voters’ minds across the country when they think of President Donald Trump, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll, but Pennsylvanians’ affinity for the president is growing.

A separate state poll conducted by Franklin & Marshall College showed Pennsylvania’s presidential approval rating is increasing.

His core supporters “really hang in with him no matter how controversial he becomes. The drain the swamp, anti-establishment themes are what won him the presidency” and continue to resonate with supporters in Pennsylvania, said Franklin & Marshall pollster G. Terry Madonna.

Mr. Trump’s overall performance rating is 37 percent in Pennsylvania, up from 32 percent in February, according to Franklin & Marshall. Mr. Madonna attributes that largely to respondents’ agreement with the president’s actions and policies on Syria and immigration.

Nationally, Mr. Trump’s popularity is sinking, according to the latest Quinnipiac University poll. Quinnipiac put his national approval rating at 36 percent. That’s in line with Franklin & Marshall’s Pennsylvania approval rating, but it’s down 6 points from Quinnipiac’s national poll in February. It’s his lowest approval rating since becoming president, according to Quinnipiac.

Fifty-eight percent of respondents said the president’s first 100 days were mainly a failure while 38 percent said mainly a success.

“There is no way to spin or sugarcoat these sagging numbers,” said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac poll. “Deepening concerns about Trump’s honesty, intelligence and level-headedness are red flags that the administration simply can’t brush away.”

Quinnipiac also asked respondents for the first word that comes to mind when they think of Mr. Trump. “Leader” was the fourth most mentioned, followed by “unqualified,” “president,” “strong,” “businessman,” “ignorant” and “egotistical.”

But in Pennsylvania, politics is as polarized as ever, with both Democrats and Republicans digging in their heels. That’s particularly true of Trump voters whose support is unwavering, Mr. Madonna said.

While the state’s opinion of the Republican president is improving, so is its opinion of Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf. The Franklin & Marshall poll also showed that 41 percent of registered voters in Pennsylvania believe Mr. Wolf is doing a good or excellent job as governor. That’s an improvement over the past two gubernatorial polls in February 2017 and February 2016 when 38 percent and 31 percent, respectively, said he was doing a good or excellent job.

Since then he has been more visible, making public appearances around the state to tout bipartisan efforts to legalize medical marijuana and reform liquor control.

The approval rating of U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., who faces re-election next year, remained unchanged from February at 38 percent. Both polls were conducted before Tuesday’s controversial firing of FBI Director James B. Comey.