American optimism hits new low

American optimism has hit its lowest point in nearly two decades, according to data released Tuesday by Gallup. The sour feeling months before the midterm elections stands in stark contrast to President Donald Trump’s rhetoric, in which he has dismissed Americans’ concerns about affordability and inflation.

Gallup’s poll found that just 59.2% of Americans in 2025 felt they would have high-quality lives in five years. That is the lowest such rating since the firm first started asking the question in 2009. 

Additionally, only 62.1% of Americans said the current state of their lives was high quality, making for the second-lowest level in the poll's history, trumped only by the 59.5% level of satisfaction recorded in 2020, during the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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The sour mood in the country isn’t reflected in Trump’s spin of the country’s poor economic performance during his first year back in office.

Last month, Trump declared that issues surrounding inflation had been “solved,” a statement starkly at odds with Americans’ experiences. In reality, inflation is still above the Federal Reserve’s target of a 2% annual rate, and polls show it is a top issue for voters.

Confronted with consumer concerns about affordability, Trump has insisted that it is a “hoax” being pushed by the Democratic Party—a false accusation in line with his years of promoting baseless conspiracy theories.

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Economic indicators like job openings and layoff announcements are all flashing red. Despite inheriting a recovering economy from former President Joe Biden, Trump has put in place policies like tariffs that are proving to be a drag on growth. In his first term, Trump had a net job loss, and his second term policies are on a path to similar levels of failure.

Instead of reversing course, Trump has stuck to his policies and is currently pushing to install Kevin Warsh at the Federal Reserve. Warsh is a Trump-approved yesman who made a series of incorrect calls about the 2008 financial crisis.

Beyond economic concerns, Americans’ falling optimism may be tied to the chaos from Trump’s mass deportation policy. Families are being disrupted, citizens have been detained and harassed, and innocent people have been shot and killed by federal agents, though Gallup’s survey was fielded before agents killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis last month.

Trump has said he doesn’t know why his approval ratings are in the toilet, but the answer seems very clear: It’s him. He and congressional Republicans seem to be doing everything possible to tell voters to throw them out of office and limit their power.

And the voters seem to be listening.

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