As of 10/31/20, an NBC/WSJ poll found that 45% of registered voters approved of the job that President Trump was doing while 52% disapprove.
The Washington Post Fact Checker had recorded more than 22,500 false or misleading statements. [WP 11/15/20]
The last three presidents to fail in an effort to be re-elected were George H.W. Bush in 1992, Jimmy Carter in 1976, and Herbert Hoover in 1932.
The following is the last Gallup survey and FiveThirtyEight of likely voters for 2020 and their approval/disapproval of President Trump.
| Gallup (all adults) | FiveThirtyEight (Registered / Likely voters) | |||
| Date | Approval | Dis-approval | Approval | Dis-approval |
| 10/27/20 | 44% | 55%LV | 43.4% | 53.7% |
| 9/28/20 | 46% | 52% | 43.4% | 53.0% |
| 8/12/20 | 42% | 55% | 41.8% | 54.5% |
The following are some additional looks at the President’s job performance. The numbers below are of Registered Voters unless followed by an “A” which means “all voters” or “L” which means “likely voters”.
| Date | NBC / WSJ | WP / ABC | CNN | FOX | QUINNIPIAC |
| OCT ’20 | 43/52 | 45/54 | 42/56 | 46/64 | 41/55 |
| SEP ’20 | 45/53 | 44/55 | 41/54 | 48/51 | 43/53 |
| AUG ’20 | 44/53 | 42/57 | 43/54 | 44/54 | 43/54 |
| JULY ’20 | 42/56 | 40/58 | xx | 45/54 | 36/60 |
On economic policy, Trump’s final approval ratings remain in positive territory and were helpful to him in the election.
| Approve | Disapprove | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 11/10/20 | 54% | 43% | Econ/YouGov (RV) |
| 10/27/20 | 48% | 45% | USA Today (LV) |
| 10/4/20 | 49% | 48% | CNN |
| 8/18/20 | 51% | 45% | Econ/YouGov (RV) |
| 7/7/20 | 49% | 47% | Econ/YouGov (RV) |
On foreign policy, Trump’s approval ratings remain in negative territory.
| Approve | Disapprove | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/27/20 | 45% | 54% | Gallup (LV) |
| 9/28/20 | 46% | 53% | Gallup (A) |
| 8/12/20 | 39% | 54% | Fox (RV) |
| 7/7/20 | 40% | 57% | Reuters (A) |
Two law firms representing the Trump campaign have decided not to continue representing the campaign because of pressure from other clients. The two firms are Porter Wright Morris & Arthur and Jones Day. [WW]
Judges Nominated and Confirmed to Date
Because the U.S. Senate remains in Republican hands and the filibuster is no more, the President can continue unchecked his goal of remaking the federal judiciary. The chart below reflects the number of Article III court judges appointed by all U.S. presidents since Jimmy Carter.
| Total | Supreme Ct | Appeals Ct | District Ct | Int’l Trade | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trump – thru 11/4/20 | 222 | 3 | 53 | 164 | 2 |
| Obama – 8 years | 325 | 2 | 55 | 268 | |
| GW Bush – 8 years | 325 | 2 | 62 | 261 | |
| Clinton – 8 years | 373 | 2 | 66 | 305 | |
| GHW Bush – 4 years | 192 | 2 | 42 | 148 | |
| Reagan – 8 years | 376 | 3 | 83 | 290 | |
| Carter – 4 years | 259 | 0 | 56 | 203 |
There are currently several nominations awaiting Senate action, 33 seats in the District Courts, and 1 seat on the Court of International Trade.
There are also currently 55 vacancies on the U.S. District Courts and 2 vacancies on the Court of International Trade. [USCourts/Wikipedia/List of federal judges appointed by Donald Trump]
Amy Coney Barrett is the first justice in 151 years who was confirmed without a single vote from the minority party. [WP 10/27/20]
Disassembling
President Trump has opened up all 16.7 million acres of Alaska’s Tongass National Forest, stripping the protections that had safeguarded one of the world’s largest in-tact temperature rainforests for nearly two decades.
It is now legal for logging companies to build roads and cut and remove timber throughout more than 9.3 million acres of forest. [WP 10/28/20]
The administration has called for oil and gas firms to pick spots where they’d like to drill during a coming lease sale to be conducted by the Interior Department before Biden takes the oath of office in January. [WP 11/16/20]