President Donald Trump's approval ratings in the United States have been described as "historically low," and according to a new global survey published by Pew Research Center, he is not faring much better overseas.
"In the eyes of most people surveyed around the world, the White House's new occupant is arrogant, intolerant and even dangerous."
—Pew Research CenterThe survey, based on interviews conducted in 37 countries, found that Trump's first six months in the White House have done more to harm public opinion of the U.S. around the world than George W. Bush's entire eight-year tenure.
Much of the world's ire was directed at specific policies either proposed or implemented by the Trump administration, like his longstanding call for a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border and his decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord. But the survey also included broader questions, aimed at gauging the world's view of Trump's character. Sixty-two percent of those polled said they believe Trump is "dangerous," and only 22 percent expressed confidence that Trump would "do the right thing" in international affairs.
"Trump and many of his key policies are broadly unpopular around the globe, and ratings for the U.S. have declined steeply in many nations," Pew noted in a summary of the report's findings. "Trump's character is also a factor in how he is viewed abroad. In the eyes of most people surveyed around the world, the White House's new occupant is arrogant, intolerant and even dangerous."
Donald Trump’s presidency has had a major impact on how the world sees the United States https://t.co/5tEQBTXnlR pic.twitter.com/NYwIZeuVEO
— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) June 27, 2017
The report also found:
- 76 percent said they disagreed with Trump's proposed border wall
- 23 percent said they believe Trump cares about ordinary people
- 5 percent of Mexicans polled expressed confidence in Trump
- 62 percent disagree with Trump's restrictions on Muslim immigration to the U.S.
- 71 percent disagree with Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate accord
"The sharp decline in how much global publics trust the U.S. president on the world stage is especially pronounced among some of America's closest allies in Europe and Asia, as well as neighboring Mexico and Canada," Pew noted.
"While 93 percent in Sweden had faith in Mr. Obama to do the right thing, only 10 percent had such confidence in Mr. Trump, a drop of 83 percentage points," the New York Times added. "The drop was also large in Germany and the Netherlands (75 percentage points), South Korea (71 points), France (70 points), Spain (68 points) and Britain (57 points).
The only bright spots for Trump came from Russia and Israel, the two countries that expressed more faith in him than former President Barack Obama.
Overall, though, "ratings for President Trump look very similar to those for Bush at the end of his term," Pew concluded.
Across 37 nations polled, Trump gets higher marks than Obama in only two countries: Russia and Israel https://t.co/npezw1eyLJ pic.twitter.com/4A0CYBXH0w
— Pew Research Center (@pewresearch) June 27, 2017
