WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� Immigration remains a stronger issue for President Donald Trump than the economy or Iran, according to a new AP-NORC poll, even after in encounters with Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the span of under a week in July.
Trump is not getting a glowing endorsement on his immigration approach from Americans overall, the new survey from found. Only 39% of U.S. adults approve of his performance on immigration, a decline from 49% at the beginning of his second term.
Despite that, about 8 in 10 Republicans continue to approve of how Trump is handling immigration. That鈥檚 from the beginning of Trump鈥檚 second term, when about 9 in 10 Republicans approved, but his support on the issue within his base has been mostly stable since last summer despite a chaotic year of immigration enforcement actions.
Republicans are also more likely to approve of how Trump is handling immigration than the economy or Iran. In just the past month, Republican approval of Trump’s handling of Iran
The poll found that about half of U.S. adults say Trump has 鈥済one too far鈥� on deporting immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. That number has also remained steady for over a year, despite that deployed to large cities and involving encounters with immigration officers since the mass deportation campaign began. Republicans, however, are much less likely to say Trump has overstepped in his immigration enforcement actions.
Overall, Trump鈥檚 popularity has fallen since he took office last year, but the findings highlight the relatively muted impact of the past year鈥檚 aggressive immigration enforcement on his public standing. That鈥檚 a contrast with views of his handling of Iran, where he鈥檚 seen more recent , even among his own supporters.
Immigration remains a strong issue for Trump with Republicans
Americans remain divided on whether Trump has overstepped on immigration.
About half of U.S. adults say Trump has 鈥済one too far鈥� when it comes to restricting legal immigration, in line with the last time the question was asked in February. Roughly half 鈥� 47% 鈥� say Trump has exceeded his authority when it comes to deporting immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. In each case, about 3 in 10 say Trump鈥檚 actions have been 鈥渁bout right,鈥� and closer to 2 in 10 say he hasn鈥檛 gone far enough.
Few Republicans 鈥� about 2 in 10 or fewer 鈥� say he鈥檚 鈥済one too far鈥� on deporting immigrants in the country illegally or restricting legal immigration.
Most Americans, however, say he鈥檚 gone too far when it comes to using traffic stops to find and arrest immigrants living in the U.S. illegally 鈥� a practice that was at the center of two recent ICE shootings in Maine 鈥� and when it comes to sending federal immigration agents into U.S. cities. Republicans were also less likely to see these as oversteps.
James Leatherman, a 68-year-old Republican from San Antonio, is overall supportive of Trump鈥檚 handling of the presidency and backs him on immigration in particular.
鈥淵ou cannot come in here illegally 鈥� you鈥檙e breaking the law,鈥� he said.
More Americans disapprove than approve of the way ICE is enforcing immigration laws. About half of Americans 鈥渟trongly” or 鈥渟omewhat” disapprove of the agency’s approach, while roughly 3 in 10 鈥渟trongly” or 鈥渟omewhat” approve. There’s a wide partisan split, though: About 6 in 10 Republicans approve of ICE鈥檚 approach, compared with about 2 in 10 independents and just 4% of Democrats.
Eric Coursen, 76, an independent from Chincoteague, Virginia, agrees with the president that there were issues with the immigration system. He said doesn鈥檛 believe in open borders 鈥� but he鈥檚 deeply opposed to how the administration has been enforcing immigration law.
鈥淚t鈥檚 like taking some bread when you鈥檙e hungry and you take it, you鈥檙e going to shoot that person rather than just, you know, get them for theft?鈥� he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just overkill.鈥�
Trump鈥檚 approval on the economy remains low
About 3 in 10 U.S. adults, 32%, approve of how Trump is handling the economy. That鈥檚 down from 40% at the start of his second term, and marks a shift from his first presidential term when the economy was a stronger issue for Trump.
During Trump鈥檚 first term, his lowest approval on the economy was 40% in December 2017. Now, his rating is well below that.
Roughly 7 in 10 Republicans 鈥� 69% 鈥� approve of how Trump is handling the economy. That鈥檚 roughly in line with the share who approve of how he鈥檚 handing the presidency, but it鈥檚 slightly below the 78% who approved early in Trump鈥檚 second term.
Leatherman, despite his support for Trump, said he’s feeling the pinch of higher prices in his budget. 鈥淚 almost have to go to the bank to get a loan before I go grocery shopping,鈥� he said.
About 7 in 10 U.S. adults describe the nation鈥檚 economy as 鈥渧ery鈥� or 鈥渟omewhat鈥� poor, in line with April. Republicans are more optimistic, with about 6 in 10 saying that the U.S. economy is doing well, compared with about 2 in 10 independents and roughly 1 in 10 Democrats.
More Republicans approve of how Trump is handling healthcare
Healthcare has never been a strong issue for Trump. Unlike with immigration and the economy, a clear majority of U.S. adults has disapproved of Trump鈥檚 performance on healthcare across both presidential terms. That hasn鈥檛 changed in the new poll, which found that only about 3 in 10 Americans approve of how Trump is handling healthcare, in line with when the question was last asked in December.
He鈥檚 seen a rebound on the issue among his own supporters since late last year, though. Roughly 71% of Republicans now approve, compared with 59% in the December poll.
That shift comes as Democrats kicked off 100 days until the midterm elections last week, with leaders saying they鈥檒l , in addition to the cost of living and the war in Iran. Democrats and independents continue to overwhelmingly disapprove of Trump鈥檚 handling of healthcare.
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The AP-NORC poll of 1,165 adults was conducted July 23-27 using a sample drawn from NORC鈥檚 probability-based AmeriSpeak Panel, which is designed to be representative of the U.S. population. The margin of sampling error for adults overall is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points. The margin of sampling error is plus or minus 6.0 for Republicans overall and plus or minus 5.4 for Democrats overall.
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