President Donald Trump is a product of our tumultuous times. He's tapped into a gnawing feeling of economic and political insecurity. Shouting "fake news" in a press conference or clubbing politicians on Twitter resonates for a reason. Congressional job approval and mainstream media trust (or lack thereof) are in the proverbial basement, hovering near all-time lows.
From politicians to the mainstream media, confidence is withering.
As Hedgeye CEO Keith McCullough explains in the video below from The Macro Show earlier this year:
“If you really look at his strategy. He’s anti-mainstream media and anti-Congress. Do you know what the approval rating is for these two things are? Very, very low. Trump wakes up every day and he effectively enrages these two constituencies. But he’s got a lot of people that don’t like these things more than they don’t like him.”
Consider this...
1. Congressional Job Approval
Only 23% of Americans approve... 64% disapprove.
2. Mainstream Media Trust
Only 21% of Americans have “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in TV news … versus 36% ten years ago.
Take a look at the Gallup polling data below. People were asked "how much confidence" do you have in each of the following institutions. Respondents answering "a great deal" or "quite a lot" has been slipping across the board for two decades.
3. America ‘Right Direction or Wrong Track?’
Boding well for Trump, 42% of Americans say the country is on the right track today … that’s almost double the 24% at December 2015 lows.
In light of these numbers, don’t expect the Trump administration to stop bash Congress and the media any time soon.
