From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, April 21, 2026
Only 36% of Americans approve of strikes on Iran, many question Trump’s temperament — poll
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WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump’s approval rating held at the lowest of his term in recent days as many Americans questioned his temperament amid the Iran war and a feud with Pope Leo, a Reuters/Ipsos poll finds.
The six-day public opinion poll, concluded yesterday, shows only 36 percent of Americans approve of Trump’s job performance, unchanged from a month earlier. Trump enjoyed the highest approval rating of his current term, 47%, shortly after he was sworn in to office on January 20, 2025.
Trump has been under pressure since his administration and Israel launched a war against Iran in February, which has pushed gasoline prices sharply higher. Some 36% of Americans approve of US military strikes against Iran, compared with 35% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted April 10-12. The latest poll of 4,557 US adults nationwide, conducted online, has a margin of error of 2 percentage points.
The poll shows many Americans, including some members of Trump’s Republican Party, have some concerns about the 79-year-old president’s temperament and mental sharpness following a series of explosive outbursts.
Only 26% of Americans say they consider Trump “even-tempered.” Republicans are divided on this question, with 53% considering him to be so and 46% saying he is not, while a handful declined to answer the question. Only 7% of Democrats see Trump as even-tempered.
The Times of Israel Community.