At this point in his second term, President Trump has higher approval ratings than Presidents George W. Bush and Obama in their second terms. According to the Real Clear Politics average of presidential approval polls, Mr. Trump, on August 13, 2025, had a rating of 45.8 percent. Mr. Bush on August 13, 2005, registered a 43.2 percent rating. Mr. Obama, on August 13, 2013, stood at 43.8 percent.

For Mr. Trump, this approval rating follows: two impeachments; a verdict of liable defamation; a criminal verdict of guilty by a Manhattan jury for a supposed violation of federal election law; a prosecution by the Fulton County district attorney for alleged presidential election interference; an investigation by a special counsel into Mr. Trump’s role in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot, and the special counsel investigation of Mr. Trump’s alleged violation of federal law over his possession and handling of government documents, including classified documents. 

The approval rating comes despite, too,  a verdict of liability and a judgment, now approaching $500 million, for supposedly inflating the value of his properties to obtain bank loans; a two-and-a-half-year investigation by a special counsel into whether Mr. Trump colluded with Russia to win the 2016 election and whether he committed obstruction of justice during the investigation, and two assassination attempts, one of which nearly killed him.

Mr. Trump’s approval rating follows the signing of the controversial Big Beautiful Bill. Critics claim the bill “kicks off” deserving recipients of Medicaid while providing “tax cuts for the rich.”

The approval rating follows fierce pushback from so-called sanctuary cities and states over Mr. Trump’s campaign promise of mass deportations. The approval rating follows Mr. Trump’s unrealized promise to end the Russia-Ukraine war “on Day 1,” as well as Hamas’s refusal to release an estimated 50 of the remaining hostages under a deal Mr. Trump thought he reached for their release.

Mr. Trump’s approval rating follows bombshell accusations by the Trump Department of Justice that Mr. Obama and members of his administration in charge of intelligence knowingly falsely accused Russia of not just 2016 election interference but of committing this interference to aid Mr. Trump. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced convening a grand jury to investigate whether criminal charges should be brought against members of the Obama administration, possibly including Mr. Obama himself.

Mr. Trump’s rating is all the more stunning given the nearly wall-to-wall bad coverage by much of the media. In April 2025, the Media Research Center wrote, “Media Research Center analysis of the ABC, CBS and NBC evening newscasts shows the new Trump administration has faced a withering 92 percent negative coverage, even worse than the relentlessly hostile coverage Trump faced in early 2017 … [these] news programs averaged more than 19.3 million viewers during the first quarter of 2025, making them the most widely-watched news programs in the country.”

But wait, there’s more.

Mr. Trump’s August 13 rating took place before his summit meeting with President Vladimir Putin and before Mr. Trump’s White House meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky. After Mr. Trump’s nearly three-hour meeting with Mr. Putin, Mr. Trump and the Russian leader jointly addressed the press. They took no questions, but Mr. Putin agreed with one of Mr. Trump’s frequent talking points against President Biden. Mr. Putin said: “Today when President Trump says that if he was the president in 2022, there would be no war, and I’m quite sure it would indeed be so. I can confirm it. Overall, me and President Trump have built a very good and businesslike contact.”

That’s an extraordinary statement about Mr. Trump and about his predecessor. And then there’s the praise of Mr. Trump by NATO’s secretary general, Mark Rutte, and his acknowledgement that Mr. Trump was right to, a) criticize the failure of many NATO countries to meet their financial obligations to the alliance and, b) make NATO pay America for its weapons and material assistance America is giving Ukraine.

Based on recent events, Mr. Trump’s August 13 rating has become ancient history. After the meeting with Mr. Putin, Mr. Trump’s Insider Advantage approval rating among voters now stands at 54 percent. Pollster Mike Towery said: “Only the nation’s oldest voters disapprove of his job performance, which is consistent with our prior surveys. Overall, his approval numbers are surging upwards post-summit.”

I have long predicted Mr. Trump’s many successes would eventually propel him to a 60 percent approval rating. Should Mr. Trump’s meetings with Messrs. Putin, Zelensky, and European leaders lead to an end to the Russia-Ukraine war, a 60 percent rating is easily in sight.

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