Trump’s Tariff Plan

Although he has already announced a pause for most countries, President Donald Trump’s new tariff plan has been controversial, to say the least. Framed as a bold strategy to protect American industries and reduce reliance on foreign goods, the plan has sparked sharply divided opinions among the public. In this week’s COTW, we unpack how Americans are responding, highlighting which demographics are most supportive and where skepticism runs deepest.

Here are the key takeaways from this week’s chart:

• • Overall, about 3 out of 5 Americans (~58%) strongly disapprove of Trump’s tariff plan. Just 1 out of 5 (20%) strongly approve, leaving very little room for nuance on this issue for the American public.

• • Unsurprisingly, opinions on Trump’s tariffs are extremely partisan in nature; Democrats are 4x as likely to disapprove compared to Republicans. However, that doesn’t mean that Republicans are all on the same page.

• • Republicans have the most mixed views on the president’s plan for global commerce. About 2 out of 5 (40%) strongly support the plan, but another one-quarter strongly disapprove, leaving another one-third somewhere in the middle. Trump has clearly responded to this by pausing tariffs for 90 days, but time will tell if this mixed response will bleed into other issue areas.