SurveyMonkey partnered with NBC News Decision Desk to survey 19,410 US adults and offer a look into how Americans view the current political landscape. This includes opinions on presidential approval, national priorities like immigration and inflation, partisan honesty, and reactions to government spending.
Here’s a deeper look into what this article will explore:
- Shifts in approval ratings and emotional intensity surrounding President Donald Trump
- Where Americans stand on taxpayer spending for government events like military parades
- How the public ranks honesty and trustworthiness across political parties
- Attitudes on major issues like immigration, the Harvard divide, and cost of living
- Party differences in how people define fiscal priorities and view government programs
Trump’s job approval
About less than half of Americans (45%) approve of how President Trump is doing, while a majority (55%) disapprove.
Within the Republican Party, excitement has declined, with the percentage of MAGA supporters who say they feel “thrilled” dropping from 46% to 37%.
Democrats remain against Trump, with over half (51%) saying they feel “furious” about his actions, while 65% of Independents say they disapprove of the job he’s doing.
Survey Focus: Public approval of Trump’s second-term actions and emotional response to him.
Key Stats:
- Independents: 65% disapprove
- Overall: 45% approve, 55% disapprove (unchanged since April)
- MAGA “thrilled” rating dropped from 46% to 37%
- Among Republicans: 5-point drop in “strongly approve”
- Democrats: 51% say they are “furious” about Trump’s actions
Survey tip
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Trump’s military parade
The partisan divide is highlighted here where most Americans oppose using taxpayer money for the Army’s milestone parade (64%), however, a majority of Republicans (65%) support this federal funding.
Even within the Republican Party, support is divided - 75% of MAGA, or Make America Great Again supporters, back the funding compared to 56% of non-MAGA Republicans.
Taking a deeper look at where approval was relatively low, only 14% of Americans strongly supported the parade, pointing to lack of support, even among those who back the idea.
Survey focus: Do you support or oppose using government funds for the U.S. Army’s 250th birthday parade in D.C.?
Key stats:
- 64% of Americans oppose using funds for the parade.
- Democratic opposition: 88%
- Independent opposition: 72%
- Republican support: 65%
- MAGA support: 75%, non-MAGA Republican support: 56%
- Breakdown of support intensity:
- Strongly support: 14%
- Somewhat support: 22%
- Somewhat oppose: 20%
- Strongly oppose: 44%
Survey tip
Tools like Likert scales help researchers measure how strongly people support or oppose something.
Honesty in US politics
Most Americans don’t fully trust either political party. When asked to compare, 48% say Republicans are dishonest while 44% say Democrats are dishonest.
Within the parties themselves, 22% of Republicans and 14% of Democrats say their party is not always honest.
Survey Focus: Do Americans believe political parties tell the truth?
Key stats:
- 48% say Republicans are sometimes/always dishonest; 44% say the same about Democrats.
- Only 20% say either party is sometimes/always honest.
- One-third say both parties are equally honest/dishonest.
- Partisan self-critiques:
- 22% of Republicans say their own party is dishonest
- 14% of Democrats say the same
- Trust perception splits:
- 57% view Democrats unfavorably; 56% view Republicans unfavorably
- Favorability roughly even: ~43–44% for both parties
Survey tip
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National issues: Views on immigration, Harvard, and the economy
Public opinion on three national issues were explored here: immigration policy, the Trump administration’s policy conflict with Harvard, and economic stability.
Most Americans approve of how President Trump is handling immigration (51%), however opinions on institutions like Harvard reflect a political split.
a. Immigration and the Harvard divide
About 44% of Americans believe Harvard has a positive impact on the country, while 24% view it as damaging.
Among Democrats, support it strongly, with 75% saying it helps. On the other hand, MAGA-aligned Republicans express a contrasting view, where 65% say Harvard hurts the country. Independents hold a middle-ground position, with 42% seeing Harvard as beneficial.
- 51% approve of Trump’s handling of immigration
- Public reaction to President Trump’s actions towards Harvard University:
- 44% say it helps the country, 24% say it hurts
- MAGA: 65% say it hurts
- Democrats: ~75% say it helps
- Independents: 42% say it helps
b. Budget priorities
Regarding how the government should handle its budget, Americans are evenly split. Roughly half of Americans (51%) support keeping federal spending as is, while 49% lean toward cutting back.
Among Republicans, the focus is more on reducing national debt (40%) or lowering taxes (39%), while Democrats support maintaining spending on government programs (79%), and Independents say they support stable spending (53%).
- 51% of Americans want to maintain current government spending
- 49% lean toward GOP-style reductions
- Democrats: 79% prefer maintaining spending
- Republicans: 40% prioritize debt reduction; 39% tax cuts
- Independents: 53% favor maintaining spending
c. Personal Economic Outlook
When asked about their own financial situations, 45% of Americans say not much has changed when compared to a year ago, still about one-third (35%) say things have gotten worse, whereas 21% say they’re better off.
Looking forward, there is concern about economic policies affecting everyday finances, where 51% of Americans think that tariffs will hurt their finances in the next year.
- 45% say their situation is unchanged since last year
- 34% worse, 21% better
- 51% think tariffs will hurt their finances next year
Survey tip
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Government programs and department approval ratings
When it comes to government programs and newly created federal initiatives, Americans remain divided in their views of federal programs and newly created agencies. One example is the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an initiative created by the Trump Administration to streamline public spending.
Support for DOGE has declined; however, among MAGA supporters, confidence in the agency is higher (49%) than that of Americans overall.
- 44% say it’s a success or partial success (down from 47%)
- MAGA: 49% say it's a success (down from 66%)
Our survey methodology
The data in this report comes from a nationally representative survey conducted by SurveyMonkey on behalf of the NBC News Decision Desk. The goal of this research is to provide a detailed, nonpartisan snapshot of public opinion on key political and cultural issues in the United States.
- Sample size: 19,410 U.S. adults
- Survey field dates: May 30–June 10, 2025
- Margin of error: ±2.1 percentage points
- Survey mode: Online
- Data weighting: Responses were weighted to reflect the demographic composition of the U.S. adult population, including age, gender, race, education, region, and political affiliation.
SurveyMonkey’s survey methodology and quality controls ensure the reliability and representativeness of its polling results. Findings from this survey are used to support ongoing public opinion tracking efforts conducted by NBC News.
