Poll: Americans aren’t buying Trump’s top excuse on the economy (2025)

Americans aren’t sold on President Donald Trump’s claims that his predecessor is to blame for the current state of the economy, according to a new poll.

Trump has repeatedly blamed former President Joe Biden for leaving what he believes is a “horrible” economic situation, according to CNN.

A majority of Americans, however, say that Trump, not Biden, is responsible for the economy, according to a new CBS News/YouGov poll conducted from April 8-11.

Fifty-four percent of adults said that Trump’s policies are responsible for the state of the economy, while 21% said it was Biden’s policies, according to the poll. Twenty percent of respondents said both men’s policies were equally responsible, while 5% said it was neither of them.

Americans also think the economy is getting worse, with 53% of respondents saying so, according to the poll. Just 28% said the economy is getting better and 19% said the economy is about the same, per the poll.

In terms of how Americans view Trump’s handling of the economy, 44% expressed approval, while 56% expressed disapproval.

Trump’s economic approval numbers are lower compared to the findings in the previous CBS News/YouGov poll conducted from March 27-28.

That poll found that 48% of respondents approved of how Trump is handling the economy, while 52% said they disapproved.

A majority of Americans also disapprove of how Trump is handling inflation, according to both polls. The April poll also found that only 40% approve of how Trump is handling inflation, down from 44% in the March poll. Sixty percent of respondents in the April poll said they disapproved of Trump’s handling of inflation, up from 56% in March.

In terms of overall approval rating, 47% of respondents approved of Trump’s handling of the presidency, a decrease from 50% in the March poll.

A majority of Americans — 58% — say that Trump’s policies are making the prices they pay for groceries go up and 62% say those policies are making the stock market go down, the poll found.

A majority of Americans (63%) say that tariffs implemented by the Trump administration will make the economy worse in the short term. Only 8% say the tariffs will make the economy better in the short term, while 27% said they were not sure or that the tariffs will not have any impact, according to the poll.

Forty-two percent said tariffs would make the economy worse in the long term, 34% said it would make the economy better, and 23% said they were not sure or that the tariffs would have no impact, according to the poll.

The CBS News/YouGov poll, conducted among 2,410 U.S. adults from April 8-11, has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.4%.

The CBS News/YouGov poll, conducted among 2,609 U.S. adults from March 27-28, has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.3%.

Tariffs

Trump placed sweeping tariffs on several nations this month, including Japan, Mexico, Canada, the European Union and China.

Trump, however, he suspended most of the tariffs last week for 90 days, according to the Associated Press.

As of now, a baseline import tax of 10% is placed on most nations, a 145% tariff on Chinese goods and a tariff as high as 25% placed on Mexico and Canada have been applied.

There are also tariffs on automobiles, steel and aluminum.

Tariffs are taxes imposed by a government on goods from another country. If a country imposes a 10% tariff on imported cars and a car is worth $50,000, for example, the tariff or tax would be $5,000.

A vocal supporter of tariffs, Trump has said on numerous occasions that they will help collect tax revenue for the United States and bring back manufacturing jobs. The president also views tariffs as a tool to get back at countries — believing they have treated the United States poorly.

A consequence of these tariffs is that prices of products, such as produce and automobiles, are expected to rise. Additionally, countries such as China have announced retaliatory tariffs that have targeted industries in counties that voted for Trump.