Trump Approval Hits Second-Term Low as American Pride Plummets Before 250th Birthday

A Nation on Edge Ahead of Its 250th

With America just weeks away from celebrating its 250th birthday, a sweeping new NBC News poll delivers a sobering portrait of the country's mood: a president at his weakest, a public deeply skeptical of its institutions, and a nation increasingly unsure of itself. The data lands at a pivotal moment — five months before midterm elections that could reshape control of Washington.

The polling, released on Trump's 80th birthday on June 14, shows that the president's approval rating among all U.S. adults currently sits at 39%, five months out from the pivotal midterms. The survey results mark Trump's lowest approval rating in an NBC News poll since his first term, with the outlet tracking a similar result among registered voters in July 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and the country's racial reckoning after the murder of George Floyd.

Drag on the GOP Heading Into the Midterms

Trump's poor approval rating continues to weigh down his party ahead of the midterms, with Democrats holding a 5 percentage point lead in the battle for control of Congress, according to the new national NBC News poll. The NBC poll found that 49 percent of registered voters wanted to see Democrats take control of Congress in the midterms, while 44 percent preferred Republicans being in the majority.

Almost two-thirds of independent voters disapprove of the job Trump is doing as president, and there has been a slight fall in his support from Republicans. Trump's approval rating among rural Americans also hit a new low of 50% in June, compared to 60% approval in February 2025, the month after Trump took office a second time — a notable erosion, since rural voters were central to his White House victories in 2016 and 2024. The GOP is also navigating a complicated legislative environment, with Trump repeatedly introducing new hurdles for his party's agenda on Capitol Hill.

A Record-Low Sense of American Pride

Americans have a bleak outlook on the nation's future ahead of its 250th birthday, with most saying the U.S. has already seen its best days and a record-low number saying they are extremely proud to be Americans. For the first time in the poll's history, a majority — 52% — say they have "very little" confidence or "none at all" in the federal government, up from 34% in 2016.

In the years immediately following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, as many as 70% of Americans said they felt extremely proud of their country, and 82% said they were either extremely or very proud. But those numbers have dived since then, and just 33% say they are now "extremely proud" to be an American, with another 23% describing themselves as "very proud." The partisan divide on the question is stark: 56% of Americans overall say they are extremely or very proud to be American, but by party, Republicans came in at 90% extremely or very proud, while Democrats came in at just 29%.

Political Turbulence Beyond the Numbers

California Governor Gavin Newsom said he is being investigated by the Justice Department, and accused President Donald Trump of targeting him for political reasons. Federal agents have reportedly interviewed his family, friends and former employees, in addition to requesting records from his office, while taking a similar approach with his wife. Meanwhile, on the world stage, Trump attended the Group of Seven summit in France, where both the Iran conflict and the Russia-Ukraine war were on the agenda.

The NBC and Reuters surveys come amid economic uncertainty across the nation, as Americans struggle with surging gas and grocery prices partly spurred by the Iran war. Shifts in approval and disapproval ratings could signal broader erosion and complicate the Republican Party's midterm strategies, especially as multiple trackers show Trump significantly underwater nationally. With the nation's semiquincentennial approaching and a high-stakes election on the horizon, the weeks ahead will test whether the political landscape can shift — or whether the pessimism now baked into public opinion proves to be the defining feature of this moment in American history.