Mark Halperin Pinpoints ‘Key’ Fueling Trump’s Second-Term Popularity Surge

Political analyst Mark Halperin argued during a Tuesday podcast that President Donald Trump’s higher second-term approval rating is primarily due to the popularity of his agenda.

CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten explained Monday how multiple polls have found Trump with a positive net approval rating, a striking contrast to his first term. Halperin, on “Townhall Review,” said the media fails to adequately cover the widespread support for Trump’s policies, asserting that if Americans evaluated the president solely based on his agenda, his approval rating would surge even further. (RELATED: Trump DHS Chucks Two Biden-Era Immigration Policies Into Dustbin)

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“This is Donald Trump’s high point in most polls compared to his first term, but this is such an unusual situation. It’s in some ways a second term but of course in some ways it’s a first term,” Halperin said.” The energy, the mandate, the fact that he won the popular vote this time but not the first time.”

“Most people who run for president and win twice do worse the second time. Trump did better the second time, okay?” he continued. “So more of a mandate. Four years off to think about how to do the job. More activity.”

The political analyst pointed out that the first weeks of Trump’s second term stand in sharp contrast to those of former Presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton. He credited Trump’s popularity in part to his high level of activity, authenticity and the attention he commands.

“So I’m not surprised his numbers are where they are. I wonder if they can go higher or if he’s at his ceiling,” Halperin said. “But I think the key to why he’s doing well compared to a lot of second term presidents is probably the thing the press has gotten the most wrong about Donald Trump for a decade now.”

“His agenda is popular. Not everything, but most of what he’s done for the first 3 week pass 70/30,” he continued. “It’s very popular. If people were just going on his policies, his approval rating would be even higher.”

Trump hit the ground running immediately after being sworn in, signing over 200 executive actions within 12 hours, addressing issues ranging from the border crisis to the economy.

When CNN anchor Sara Sidner asked Enten why Trump’s numbers have improved in his second term, the data reporter attributed the shift to Americans believing that Trump is delivering on his promises.

“I think one of the things that’s so important for politicians is for folks to believe what they’re saying and that they’re keeping their campaign promises. So I think this gives you a pretty gosh darn good idea of what may be going on: ‘Trump’s doing what he promised’ to do,” Enten said. “You go back to April of 2017. It was just 46% of all Americans who said that Trump was doing what he promised to do. Compare that now to February of 2025.”

“We’re living in a different world, 70% of Americans say Trump is doing what he promised to do … When Americans are 24 points more likely to say that you‘re doing what you promised to do, it’s no wonder that your net approval rating is much more likely to be on the positive side of the ledger than on the negative side,” he added.

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