Trump won't drop war, tariffs or monuments to save the GOP

Trump's second-term approval has hit an all-time low, with a Quinnipiac poll showing just thirty-two percent — and sixty-eight percent of voters say he's not focused on the problems Americans face most. Per Axios, three issues are consuming nearly all of his attention, and all three are deeply unpopular: a war, tariffs, and a fixation on monument renovations and construction projects. According to people close to the president, roughly seventy percent of his mindshare goes to monuments and renovations alone. Inside Republican circles, alarm is mounting. Multiple sources tell Axios that GOP leaders now fear major losses in the House and possibly the Senate — and that Trump has brushed aside repeated pleas to shift focus to economic affordability or other voter concerns. His reluctance to spend his super PAC's four hundred million dollars in critical races has also left donors demoralized. Axios reports Trump shows no sign of backing down on any of these issues, even as Republicans privately express doubts about whether an eighty-year-old president can change course before November.

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