Ticking time bomb sets Trump on course to crater ‘worst ever’ approval rating: CNN expert

While President Donald Trump’s favorability has already hit record lows for a second-term president, new data flagged by CNN’s Harry Enten on Monday suggests it’s about to “get worse.”

“Fresh new polling on the president’s popularity – but not as far as the president’s concerned, fresh like a daisy. This doesn’t smell good,” CNN’s John Berman said.

According to recent polling from CNBC and The Washington Post, Trump’s net approval currently stands at -22. At the same time during their second terms, Presidents Barack Obama and George Bush had net approval ratings of -8 and -20, respectively, making Trump’s favorability “the worst this century for a president at this point in a second term.”

Independent voters were driving Trump’s plummeting favorability, Enten said, who noted that Trump’s net approval was at -45 among the key voter group, beating out President Richard Nixon – who previously held the record low – by 8 points.

“Donald John Trump, the worst ever net approval rating with independents at this point in a second term,” Enten said.

Enten then flagged data from the online betting platform Kalshi that suggested Trump’s favorability could soon sink even lower.

“If you thought Donald Trump’s numbers were bad, they may get worse when folks are seeing how much it costs to fill up a tank of gas,” Enten warned.

According to Kalshi, the odds of the average price of a gallon of gasoline in the United States reaching $4.10 a gallon soared from 14% on July 13 to 84% on Monday. The average cost of a gallon of gas recently reached $4 again amid the recent flare up in the U.S. war against Iran, with oil surging more than 15% in a single week.

“Donald John Trump, the worst ever net approval rating with independents at this point in a second term.” Trump beat out Richard Nixon, who previously held the record low, by 8 points in unfavorability – @ForecasterEnten pic.twitter.com/63Y3jy0IOj — Alexander Willis (@ReporterWillis) July 20, 2026