A new Rasmussen survey gauging how likely U.S. voters feel about President Donald Trump’s trade policy shows a near-even split between those who think he is doing good work to reset international trade (43%) and those who give him a poor rating (42%).
While the stock market is bouncing up and down like a yoyo, with people’s 401K retirement accounts on a roller coaster, there is more to the survey, conducted among 1,036 U.S. Likely Voters on April 10 and 13-14.
According to the new Rasmussen data obtained by Liberty Park Press, 57 percent of voters agree with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who recently stated, “All these countries know that they’ve been ripping us off, and the day has come for that to end. … The president needs to reset global trade.” Among those voters, 37 percent “strongly agree.”
However, 37 percent disagree, including 27 percent who “strongly disagree,” Rasmussen said.
The veteran polling firm also reported that, in terms of tariffs and trade agreements, 36 percent of voters believe most countries have treated the U.S. fairly while 48 percent think most countries have treated the U.S. unfairly. Sixteen percent were not sure either way.
Ever since Trump opened this trade war by threatening tariffs, then stalling many for 90 days while ramping up tariffs against China, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has been up and down almost daily, with people seeing surprising gains, only to have them disappear the same day or the next day. For the person watching his/her retirement portfolio, losses may outpace gains, while market watchers keep trying to reassure their clients that the market will, over the long term, rebound.
That doesn’t mean much to retirees, of course.
Meanwhile, according to Rasmussen, a decisive 73 percent of voters think Trump has been more aggressive than other recent presidents when it comes to “pushing what’s good for America.” Only 13 percent see Trump as less aggressive than most of his predecessors.
“As might be expected,” Rasmussen said, “party affiliation largely shapes perceptions of Trump’s trade policy. While 70% of Republicans give the president good or excellent ratings for his handling of trade issues, 65% of Democrats rate him as doing a poor job of handling trade. Among voters not affiliated with either major party, Trump is rated good or excellent on trade issues by 41%, while 43% give him a poor rating on handling trade.
“Similarly,” Rasmussen added, “64% of Republicans and 54% of unaffiliated voters say that, In terms of tariffs and trade agreements, most countries have treated America unfairly, while a majority (53%) of Democrats think most countries have treated America fairly on trade.”
