U.S. President Donald Trump reposted on his social media platform Truth Social a message saying he was "very concerned that Republicans are sleepwalking into a midterm election beating they don't see coming." According to Forbes on the 26th, the post was written in July by right-wing commentator Matt Van Swol and warned of a Republican defeat in the midterm elections. Van Swol also listed conservative priorities he argued the party had failed to deliver, including passage of voter identification legislation that Trump has pushed for.
Ahead of the November midterm elections, the war of words between Trump and the Republican Party is intensifying. As the U.S.-Iran war drags on and Trump's approval rating continues to slide, criticism has grown louder within the party as well. Trump has been firing back at those critics with a stream of daily posts.
The repost was one of many messages Trump published that day. He posted dozens of items in a single day to make his voice heard. On that day alone, he shared a photograph of the sign for the newly renamed Donald J. Trump President International Airport, images of construction on the White House ballroom he has championed, a list of his accomplishments, news coverage favorable to his administration, a photograph with his parents and material comparing himself with former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden.
He also took aim at the committee of the National Baseball Hall of Fame for denying entry to pitcher Roger Clemens. He described those who voted against Clemens as a jealous crowd with far less talent. In another post, he said Representative Ralph Norman, who lost a Republican runoff on the 25th to Darlene Graham, whom Trump had endorsed, "destroyed his political career" by backing Nikki Haley.
Tariff Retaliation and Grocery Prices Push Trump Approval to 38.2%
Trump's social media offensive came as a reignited tariff war with Canada and the easing of some beef import rules stirred anger among Republican lawmakers from border states and farming districts. Last week he allowed a 50% tariff to take effect on roughly $20 billion worth of goods, and Canada responded with retaliatory tariffs at the same rate and scope.
Senator Thom Tillis called tariffed beef imports a misstep. Senator John Barrasso said on X that Americans want American beef on their tables, not imported beef. Beef prices have surged in recent years amid a cattle shortage, with ground beef reaching $6.89 a pound last month, 57% higher than in 2021.
Trump's approval rating continues to decline. In the polling average compiled by Nate Silver's Silver Bulletin, his approval stood at 38.2% as of that day, close to the second-term low of 38.1% recorded earlier this month. That is about 4 percentage points below the level at the start of the year. A Reuters/Ipsos survey released on the 24th put his approval at 33%, a second-term low. In the same survey, support for U.S. military action against Iran fell 3 percentage points to 31%, down 6 percentage points from March.
In recent polling, 38% of voters said Democrats would handle the economy better, putting the party ahead of Republicans for the first time in about a decade. Forbes reported that persistently low approval ratings, amid economic worries deepened by the Iran war, could damage Republican prospects in the coming midterm elections.
