One month into his second term, what do Americans really think of Donald Trump?

A new poll reveals most Americans believe Trump has exceeded his authority, with concerns over executive orders and Musk’s role

President Donald Trump speaks at the Governors Working Session in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, Friday, Feb. 21, 2025. (Pool via AP)

US president Donald Trump's second term in office began with a barrage of executive orders aimed at cutting and reshaping the US federal government, but a new poll has found that the majority of Americans believe Mr Trump has exceeded his authority since taking office just over a month ago.

Mr Trump and his posse would have you believe that these orders and his signature policies have near-universal domestic support.

The reality, however, is different according to this poll, with a majority (57%) of Americans now feeling that he has gone beyond his authority as president.

The Washington Post/Ipsos poll, published on Thursday, found that 45% of Americans strongly or somewhat support what Mr Trump has done since he returned to the Oval Office just over a month ago, but 53% disapprove of his actions thus far.

Elon Musk and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have been central to Mr Trump's presidency this time around, and the world's richest man has appeared alongside the president on TV interviews and in press briefings in the Oval Office.

DOGE has already slashed the federal workforce, terminated a number of federal contracts, and cancelled numerous US government programmes. Among its first and most significant actions was to take an axe to USAID, America's main foreign aid organisation. Other initiatives DOGE has attempted to introduce have been blocked by the courts.

But these activities, and Mr Musk's centrality to the presidential administration, are not popular with everyday Americans.

According to the Washington Post poll, one in three (34%) Americans approve of the job Mr Musk is doing within the federal government, compared with 49% who do not. A quarter (26%) approve of Mr Musk shutting down federal government programs that he deems unnecessary. Nearly two-thirds (60%) of Americans say they oppose laying off large numbers of US federal government workers, or making it easier to fire longtime US government employees.

Americans are split on whether Mr Musk is mainly cutting wasteful government spending (37%) or is cutting necessary government programs (34%), with many unsure (26%).

Elon Musk holds up a chainsaw he received from Argentina's President Javier Milei, right, as they arrive to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025, in Oxon Hill, Md. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Nearly two-thirds of Americans (63%) say they are concerned about Mr Musk’s team getting access to some federal government databases which contain Americans’ personal Social Security, Medicare, and tax information.

Overall, 54% of Americans say they disapprove of how Mr Trump managing the federal government.

And Mr Trump's other executive orders have not been popular either. While half of Americans said they supported tariffs on China, just 25% said they supported the US government imposing tariffs on Canada and Mexico.

More generally, and perhaps most importantly for Mr Trump’s approval ratings, 69% of Americans said they felt that tariffs on Canadian, Chinese, and Mexican goods would cause price increases in the US.

A sizable majority of respondents (84%), took the view that, if a federal court rules that something the Trump administration has done is illegal, the administration should follow the court ruling. Only one in ten (11%) believe that Mr Trump and his administration should ignore the court ruling.

The poll found that Mr Trump's most unpopular order was the pardoning of people convicted of violent crimes related to the US Capitol riot of January 6, 2021. Just 14% of Americans said they supported this move.

The poll also highlighted a clear view on what Mr Trump should do if a federal court issued a ruling that something the administration has done is illegal: 84% say the administration should follow the court ruling; only 11% say such rulings should be ignored.

Just one-third of Americans believe that Republicans in the US Congress will try to stop Mr Trump if he goes beyond his authority as president, while 56% believe that the Supreme Court will try to stop Mr Trump if he does this.

Interestingly, most Americans (45%) want to see the next Congress controlled by Democrats so they can act as a check on the president's power. 41% want to see the next Congress controlled by the Republican party.

As regards the wider US economy, 53% of Americans said they disapproved of how Mr Trump has handled things so far, compared to 45% who approve. Mr Trump's most popular area of responsibility is immigration, with 50% of Americans saying they approve his policies, compared with 48% who say they do not.

However, it's not all bad news for Mr Trump’s administration. As Politico points out, his support is still a few points higher than it was at this point in his first term.

And as the Washington Post's Aaron Blake points out, Mr Trump isn’t that unpopular yet.

"Historically speaking. It’s normal to be in the mid-40s these days."

However, he adds: "he’s giving people plenty of reasons to dislike what he’s doing. And he’s damaging his claims to a mandate in the process".