The mainstream media wants you to think President Trump’s second term is imploding. Legacy media headlines are practically screaming doom and gloom. But the numbers tell a different story.
The pile-on in recent weeks has been relentless, with various outlets reporting about how his approval rating hit a second-term low or claiming that Republicans are abandoning him. CNN’s Harry Enten recently declared that, “I would say this is probably the worst 10-day period for the president in the polls his entire second term. The numbers are just atrocious!”
“When your best poll has you still 14 points underwater, you know it’s truly bad,” Enten continued. “And when it’s as bad as 26 points underwater, we’re talkin’ about an average well, well, well underwater, in the deep blue sea, swimming with the fishes.”
This has been the worst 10-day polling period for Trump in his 2nd term.
His overall net approval hit record lows in 5 polls.
His net approval with independents is down 39 pts from January to -43 pts.
His net approval on inflation is down to -34 pts.
Just atrocious. pic.twitter.com/cosYEO0xb0
— (((Harry Enten))) (@ForecasterEnten) November 21, 2025
Here’s what they’re not telling you. Trump’s second-term polling actually mirrors the trajectory of his two most recent two-term predecessors, and as of Dec. 3, he’s outperforming both of them.
According to RealClearPolitics, Trump’s current average job approval rating for his second term is 42.4%. At the same point in their second terms, Barack Obama was at 39.8% and George W. Bush was at 41%.
Trump, Obama, Bush Approval on December 3, Second Term Year 1
🔴Trump: 42.4%
🔴Bush: 41%
🔵Obama: 39.8%RealClearPolitics Polling Average pic.twitter.com/7egcMslTRB
— RealClearPolling (@RCPolling) December 4, 2025
That makes Trump the most popular second-term president in the last twenty years, with Obama holding the dubious honor of being the least popular.
Funny how I don’t remember the mainstream media calling Obama a lame duck when his numbers were worse than Trump’s are now. The double standard is glaring. The media’s selective interpretation reveals far more about their bias than it does about Trump’s actual standing with voters.
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Second terms are historically tougher for presidents, so naturally, the media is trying to give us the impression that Trump is in dire straits politically, when actually, despite everything the left has thrown at him, he’s outperforming even Barack Obama, whom the media desperately sought to prop up for eight years.
In fact, as CNN’s Scott Jennings recently noted, Trump is doing better than Barack Obama when it comes to support from his own party.
“So, can we just go to the data — CNN’s own data from our own Data Analyst, Harry Enten. President Trump has an 87% approval rating among Republicans, which is higher than Barack Obama’s approval rating among Democrats at this point in his term, higher than where George W. Bush was in his term,” Jennings said last week. “He is the strongest for his own party, strongest president at this point in his second term in the modern era.”
The coordinated effort to paint Trump as politically damaged goods is as pathetic as it is obvious.
The left keeps hoping Trump will collapse under the weight of negative coverage, but reality keeps getting in the way. Trump remains much stronger than the media wants to admit, and unfortunately for them, the numbers back that up. Make no mistake about it, Trump’s base remains solid, his approval compares favorably to recent predecessors, and the liberal media’s wishful thinking won’t change any of that.
The liberal media’s desperate spin on Trump’s polls crumbles under cold, hard facts — he’s outperforming Obama and Bush at this stage in their second terms. PJ Media cuts through the noise and reports what the legacy media won’t. Join PJ Media VIP today to fuel our fight and keep the truth alive. Use promo code FIGHT for 60% off and unlock exclusive content. Don’t let the left bury the real story — stand with us now!
