{"id":44426,"date":"2026-04-01T06:15:36","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T11:15:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/huewhite.com\/umb\/?p=44426"},"modified":"2026-05-03T15:13:30","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T20:13:30","slug":"the-2026-senate-campaign-updates-12","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/huewhite.com\/umb\/2026\/04\/01\/the-2026-senate-campaign-updates-12\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2026 Senate Campaign: Updates"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Anchor In Their Underwear<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I have mentioned this before, but President Trump continues to slide towards the bubbling lava pit of incompetency and American contempt. James Downie of MS NOW<\/strong><\/em> provides a helpful summation<\/a>:<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no other way to put it: The\u00a0most recent Associated Press-NORC poll<\/a>\u00a0was a disaster for President Donald Trump. Sixty-seven percent of Americans disapproved of his presidency, up seven percentage points in one month. His approval was down five percentage points over the same period to 33%. On immigration, his strongest issue, his approval was 40%; on the war with Iran, 32%; on the economy, 30%; and on cost of living, 23%.<\/p>\n

That was just a single survey, but several brutal new polls have been released in the past week.\u00a0YouGov<\/a>\u00a0put Trump\u2019s approval\/disapproval at 37%\/59%,\u00a0CNBC<\/a>\u00a0put it at 40%\/58% and\u00a0Reuters-Ipsos<\/a>\u00a0put it at 36%\/62%. The president has been below 40% in\u00a0most polling averages<\/a>, such as\u00a0The New York Times\u2019<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0G. Elliott Morris\u2019 FiftyPlusOne<\/a>. Instead of a \u201cvibe shift\u201d that permanently reshaped the parties\u2019 coalitions, the voting groups who moved right in 2024 have fled the president in droves.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

And, a little later,<\/p>\n

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Six months ahead of the November midterm elections, the Republican Party faces a deteriorating political climate, with Americans broadly dissatisfied with President Donald Trump\u2019s leadership on the Iran war and other key issues and an electorate in which Democrats are significantly more motivated to vote, according to a\u00a0Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s approval on economic issues, which were critical to his political comeback in 2024, has fallen since he launched the Iran war in late February.<\/p>\n

Americans disapprove of his handling of the situation with Iran by 66 percent to 33 percent. His rating on the economy has declined by seven points, to 34 percent, as gas prices have spiked. His approval rating on inflation has fallen five points in that time to 27 percent and his lowest rating comes on perceptions of his handling of the general cost of living, with 23 percent approving vs. 76 percent disapproving.<\/p>\n

Trump\u2019s overall approval now stands at 37 percent, largely the same as the 39 percent figure in February. But his disapproval has reached 62 percent, the highest of his two terms in office. Among Republicans, Trump\u2019s approval has held steady at 85 percent, but his ratings among Republican-leaning independents have reached a new low of 56 percent. His approval rating stands at 25 percent among independents overall. [WaPo<\/strong><\/a>]<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

The implicit question for GOP<\/strong><\/em> Senate candidates remains the same as last time: whether they support a President whose very governmental position is ripping holes in their Party, or do they defy him and infuriate, possibly, the President’s MAGA<\/strong> base? Not a cud I’d care to swallow, but if I had to I’d go with the rejection of the President, and I’d insert casual mentions of the Epstein Files<\/strong> into my speeches, because much of MAGA<\/strong> is reportedly still furious about the Epstein Files<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Chomp Chomp Chomp<\/strong><\/h3>\n

And now for the tough sinew<\/a> of this chuck of throwaway … flesh:<\/p>\n