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USA Today
20-06-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Trump pivots to distractions as polls show collapsing support for his agenda
Trump pivots to distractions as polls show collapsing support for his agenda | Opinion Americans give Trump a failing grade on the budget, trade and immigration. That's tough to swallow for a politician who gauges everything on public perception. Show Caption Hide Caption 'No Kings' protests vastly outdraw Trump's military parade A stark contrast emerged in attendance between the Trump administration's Army birthday parade in Washington, DC, and the sweeping 'No Kings' protests held nationwide. unbranded - Newsworthy Recent polling data indicates that the majority of Americans disapprove of President Trump's budget bill, particularly its cuts to Medicaid. Trump's immigration policies, including increased ICE raids, are facing declining public support. The president's trade policies are also unpopular, with a majority of Americans disapproving of his approach. Trump's overall job approval rating has fallen since he took office, with more Americans disapproving than approving of his performance. Donald Trump's plan for his second term as president has been to run the table quickly to score one quick and big budget victory pushed through on artificial deadlines and whip the vote for Republican support in Congress. Trump paired that objective with two other staples of his reelection campaign – punishing America's allies with illogical trade wars and setting a historical record for the economy-disrupting mass deportation of undocumented immigrants. It's summer now, and the report card has arrived. Americans give Trump a failing grade on the budget, trade and immigration. That's tough to swallow for a politician who gauges everything on public perception. Trump, being Trump, is now pivoting to distractions, touting a military parade that flopped as an expensive boondoggle and then flipping from diplomacy with Iran to potentially ordering air strikes on that country. Take our poll: Should US go to war with Iran or support Israel from afar? | Opinion Americans disapprove of budget bill slashing Medicaid Let's start with Trump's budget, which Republican leaders in Congress call the "one big, beautiful bill" in honor of their continuing deference to whatever he wants and the dereliction of their duty to serve as a coequal branch of our government. The version that narrowly passed the House slashed federal safety net programs to boost tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans. Some senators, seeking to make things even better for the rich at the expense of the poor, want bigger cuts to Medicaid, food stamps and other programs. Opinion: Trump lied about the LA protests so you wouldn't see what he's really doing A batch of recent polls shows Americans reject that: A June 11 Quinnipiac University poll found that 53% of American voters oppose the budget bill, while 27% approve it. Nearly half of the voters polled said funding for Medicaid should go up, not down, while 40% said it should stay the same and just 10% wanted it cut. A June 16 Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll found that 50% of Americans think we spend too little on Medicaid, while 31% say we spend enough and just 18% say we spend too much. Forty-five percent of Americans think we should spend more on food and nutrition assistance, while 30% say we spend enough and 24% say we spend too much. A June 17 KFF Health Tracking Poll found that 64% of Americans hold an unfavorable view of Trump's budget bill, while 83% of them hold a favorable view of Medicaid. Republican support for the bill came in strong at 61% at first, but then dropped by 20 points when the Republicans polled heard details about how the legislation would force millions off their health care plans. Polling finds Americans disagree with Trump on immigration, economy, border security This much seems clear: The more Americans learn about Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the more they find it small-minded and ugly. That explains the artificial deadlines. Trump and his Republican allies in Congress want to wrap this up by July 4. But Republican infighting – moderates who fear it goes too far, far-righters who complain it doesn't go far enough – will make for a contentious Congress for at least the next two weeks. While we wait, Trump is seeing his support on immigration – once his strongest issue – melt away in the summer of Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. The Quinnipiac University poll found 54% of the registered voters surveyed opposed his approach to immigration, while 43% approve and 3% had no opinion. Trump campaigned in 2024 on reviving America's economy. But his trade wars, which have hit our country's international allies just as hard or harder than our geopolitical foes, are unpopular. Quinnipiac found that just 38% approve of Trump's trade policy, while 57% disapprove and 6% had no opinion. The AP-NORC poll found that 32% of Americans think we spend too much on border security, while 37% think we spend the right amount and 29% think we spend too little. Trump's approval rating continues to tank. Does it matter? In this time of divisiveness, a majority of Americans can agree on one thing: Trump is disappointing them as president. Just 38% of the votes surveyed by Quinnipiac approve of Trump's job performance, while 54% disapprove. Opinion: Threats against judges nearly doubled under Trump. Republicans blame the victim. That tracks with a Pew Research Center poll released June 17, which found that 41% of those polled approve of Trump's performance while 58% disapprove. Pew noted that Trump has lost ground in his approval rating since he was sworn into office again on Jan. 20. Don't expect Trump to spend too much time worrying about what Americans tell pollsters. He has a long history of touting polls when they hold good news for him and dismissing them when they don't. He also suggested just before the 2024 election that releasing poll results he didn't like "should be illegal." Here's what you can expect: more distractions from Trump as the Republicans fights it out on which version of his budget bill passes or fails in Congress. If they listened to Americans, they would kill the bill and start from scratch. Follow USA TODAY columnist Chris Brennan on X, formerly known as Twitter: @ByChrisBrennan. Sign up for his weekly newsletter, Translating Politics, here.
USA Today
18-06-2025
- Health
- USA Today
Supreme Court turned its back on trans youth. Our community never will.
Supreme Court turned its back on trans youth. Our community never will. | Opinion In the face of the Supreme Court's decision, it's important we look for ways to tangibly support families of trans youth. The legal system may have failed them, but our community won't. Show Caption Hide Caption US upholds ban on hormone blockers for transgender minors The Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for minors, marking a significant blow to transgender rights in the United States. unbranded - Newsworthy The Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for minors. Organizations are providing resources and travel grants to families seeking care in other states. The decision intensifies worries for families about access to care and financial burdens. Support groups and community fundraising efforts are helping families navigate these challenges. With its decision in Skrmetti v. United States, the Supreme Court has delivered a heart-breaking blow to transgender youth and the families fighting to protect them. The court upheld Tennessee's law banning gender-affirming care for youth, allowing it to remain in effect. To be clear, this decision does not require states to ban gender-affirming care. It does not change the fact that interstate travel remains a constitutional right. Above all, it does not mean that families of transgender youth are alone during this crisis. I understand that moments like this can feel devastating. But right now, it's critical that we maintain hope – and that we do everything possible to support families who are facing hardships. I work as the Family Resources Manager for the Trans Youth Emergency Project, a core program of the Campaign for Southern Equality. Since 2023, we've been connecting families with vital resources and support in the face of sweeping anti-trans legislation. Opinion: Corporations won't save LGBTQ+ people. Take their money for Pride anyway. SCOTUS upholding Tennessee's ban hurts. But we can't lose hope. Every day, I speak directly with parents of transgender young people who are faced with the reality that their child's life-saving health care is not available in their home state. We offer these families up-to-date information, access to affirming providers who are not impacted by anti-transgender restrictions, and travel grants of $500, renewable every three months, to help them continue to access the care they need and deserve. And we're not alone in this work: There is a robust network of organizations supporting transgender and queer youth in every single state – from deep red and rural communities in Mississippi to major cities across the South and Midwest. There are many amazing support groups for parents and young people, including chapters of PFLAG and TransParent in every state. We're honored to partner with many of these groups, and they're a powerful place to start for families who are feeling overwhelmed or don't know where to turn. When it comes to direct logistical and financial support, we're here to help. Since launching two years ago, we have provided over $600,000 in direct travel grants for the families of transgender youth. Opinion: A trans athlete won in California. Her peers cheered – and exposed the truth. The families we connect with live with fear and exhaustion. Many families I talk to are worried about delaying or needing to stop care. They worry about the financial burden. They worry about potential prosecution from a rogue state actor or the federal government. There are worries upon worries upon worries. This Supreme Court decision will only intensify these worries. Now, families living in states with bans are facing the reality of having to travel multiple times every year, or move out of state to get their child health care. Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store. To families feeling despair, know you are not alone No family should have to shoulder so much, but I am so inspired and heartened by these parents and families who are moving mountains to care for their children. The parents and caregivers I speak to have deep love for their youth. Every few months, they are traveling hundreds of miles and spending thousands of dollars to secure care that should be available in their hometowns. Families have taken out second mortgages on their homes. Young people have adapted to switching providers multiple times as new bans and restrictions have come up. Parents have taken new jobs and uprooted their entire lives to protect their kids from anti-trans laws. I recently spoke with a grandmother in Missouri who is raising her nonbinary grandchild after the child's parents rejected them. When Missouri implemented its care ban, this grandmother was already driving hours to get treatment in Kansas, only to have that option disappear, too. She told me, 'I can't afford another trip, but I'll do it anyway. I have to.' In the face of this decision, it's important that we look for ways to tangibly and meaningfully support families. The legal system may have failed them, but I know that our community won't. And we are honored to do our part. We will continue to reach out, to provide life-saving resources, and to affirm that transgender youth have a right to grow up safe, supported, and healthy. Transgender youth deserve to live long, full, authentic lives and to realize their full potential. We're grateful to see the ways that our community has stepped up to support our program and these families. From craft sales to live performances to lemonade stands, people nationwide have hosted every fundraiser imaginable to support the families we serve. And as these health care bans remain in place, we know that help will be more critical than ever. To the parents reading this who feel fear or despair, please know this: the Trans Youth Emergency Project and so many others are here, and there is a huge community behind you ready to help you through this turbulence. We see your love. We understand the weight of your choices. And we will do everything in our power to make sure your child gets the care they need, no matter what politicians or courts say. Dr. Van Bailey is the Family Resources Manager for the Trans Youth Emergency Project, a program of the Campaign for Southern Equality. Families can get support at
USA Today
18-06-2025
- Health
- USA Today
Supreme Court rightly allows states to hit brakes on gender meddling for kids
Supreme Court rightly allows states to hit brakes on gender meddling for kids | Opinion States are in the best position to grapple with these complicated issues and to reflect the values of those who live within their borders. Show Caption Hide Caption US upholds ban on hormone blockers for transgender minors The Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for minors, marking a significant blow to transgender rights in the United States. unbranded - Newsworthy The Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's law restricting gender-affirming care for minors, leaving the decision to states. The court ruled that the law doesn't violate the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause. The decision allows states to regulate gender-affirming treatments for minors, reflecting the values of their residents. The long-term effects of these treatments are still unknown, prompting caution from some health organizations. While liberals in the news media are painting the U.S. Supreme Court's June 18 decision on transgender health care as a 'blow to transgender rights,' that's a simplistic view that overlooks what the court was asked to do. The 6-3 ruling in United States v. Skrmetti – split along ideological lines, with conservatives in the majority − upholds Tennessee's law restricting so-called 'gender-affirming' care for youth experiencing gender dysphoria. In recent years, 27 states have passed laws or policies banning those procedures for minors, so the consequences of the court's decision will be felt nationwide. The question before the court was whether Tennessee's law violates the 14th Amendment's equal protection clause by prohibiting cross-sex hormones and puberty blockers for minors. The Biden administration and the plaintiffs challenging the law claimed it was unconstitutional since a biological male teenager could be given testosterone to treat delayed puberty, while a biological female teenager would be denied the same hormone to treat gender dysphoria. The court's majority didn't buy that argument, and Chief Justice John Roberts clearly laid out the court's rationale. 'This case carries with it the weight of fierce scientific and policy debates about the safety, efficacy, and propriety of medical treatments in an evolving field,' Roberts wrote in the majority opinion. 'The voices in these debates raise sincere concerns; the implications for all are profound. The Equal Protection Clause does not resolve these disagreements. Nor does it afford us license to decide them as we see best.' Opinion: Supreme Court hears arguments in trans case. They should uphold Tennessee law. Rather, in concluding the law doesn't violate the 14th Amendment, Roberts wrote 'we leave questions regarding its policy to the people, their elected representatives, and the democratic process.' Supreme Court upholds Tennessee law. As with abortion, let states decide. That's the right approach for now. States are in the best position to grapple with these complicated issues and to reflect the values of those who live within their borders. That's been the case with abortion after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. Opinion: Democrats scream democracy is in peril ... while proving that it's absolutely fine Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti called the new ruling a win, saying the 'common sense of Tennessee voters prevailed over judicial activism.' 'A bipartisan supermajority of Tennessee's elected representatives carefully considered the evidence and voted to protect kids from irreversible decisions they cannot yet fully understand,' Skrmetti said in a statement. It's important to note the Supreme Court didn't do anything to prevent states from offering hormones and puberty blockers to gender-confused youth. Rather, it gave states the green light to regulate those treatments. More research is needed on long-term effects of 'gender-affirming care' As Roberts wrote, the implications for all involved in these cases are profound. Parents of teens experiencing gender dysphoria obviously want to do what's best for their children. Yet, the long-term consequences of these life-altering treatments are unknown. Trump is right: Transgender athletes turn girls' track meets into a farce | Opinion A 2024 review from England's well-regarded National Health Service advised 'extreme caution' in the use of such drugs for minors, and the country will offer puberty-blocking drugs only for those in clinical trials. Other European countries are backing off the use of these procedures, too. Many federal and state laws are designed to protect youth, from the required use of car seats to the age when they may legally drive or buy alcohol. Surely, states should also have the right to protect children from experimental procedures that could irrevocably change the rest of their lives. And now they do. Ingrid Jacques is a columnist at USA TODAY. Contact her at ijacques@ or on X, formerly Twitter: @Ingrid_Jacques
USA Today
18-06-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
A judge blocked the Trump administration's gender-restricting passport policy. Now what?
A judge blocked the Trump administration's gender-restricting passport policy. Now what? Show Caption Hide Caption Judge blocks Trump's passport policy targeting trans people A judge has blocked the Trump administration from enforcing a policy that denies transgender and nonbinary Americans the right to choose their gender marker on their passport. unbranded - Newsworthy A judge expanded an injunction against a Trump administration policy requiring passports to reflect sex assigned at birth. The injunction now applies to all applicants, allowing passports to align with gender identity, including the "X" marker. This temporary reprieve allows transgender, nonbinary, and intersex individuals to obtain accurate passports. Travelers can once again get a U.S. passport that aligns with their gender identity, for now. U.S. District Judge Julia Kobick in Boston expanded a preliminary injunction on Tuesday against a Trump administration policy of only issuing passports reflecting a person's gender assigned at birth. In the past, Americans had been able to get passports in line with their gender identities, including an 'X' marker as of 2022. Here's what travelers should know. How we got here On President Donald Trump's first day back in office, he issued an executive order requiring the federal government to only 'recognize two sexes, male and female,' declaring 'these sexes are not changeable.' When the State Department followed suit, transgender, nonbinary and intersex passport Americans were left in limbo for much more than travel. 'If our gender markers don't match who we are, then it's going to cause us problems, from housing from renting cars to renting hotel rooms to buying cars to buying houses, everything, you name it," Mikaela, a transgender woman in Texas whose passport was on hold, told USA TODAY in January. "There's so much more to it in every element that people just don't think about." In April, Judge Kobick issued a preliminary injunction, allowing six people named in a lawsuit co-filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, Orr v. Trump, to be able to get passports reflecting their gender identities while their case made its way through the courts. On Tuesday, Kobick expanded that preliminary injunction, following motions for class certification and expanding the previous ruling to anyone who is or will be impacted by the administration's passport policy, according to the ACLU. What happens now Following the ruling, the ACLU wrote: 'Today's ruling from the court means that a passport with a sex designation that aligns with one's gender identity or with an 'X; sex designation should be made available to anyone applying to: This includes those who, under the Trump administration's policy, were previously sent a passport with a sex designation listing their sex assigned at birth after applying for a new, renewed, or replaced passport, and/or a changed name or gender marker.' The ACLU encourages Americans to take advantage of this temporary reprieve from the policy. USA TODAY reached out to the State Department for additional comment. The ACLU referred USA TODAY back to its latest statement. It's important the block is not permanent, though that is being pursued. Contributing: Ben Adler, Kathleen Wong; USA TODAY
USA Today
18-06-2025
- Politics
- USA Today
Obama warns Trump administration has 'weak commitment' to democracy
Obama warns Trump administration has 'weak commitment' to democracy Show Caption Hide Caption 'No Kings' protests vastly outdraw Trump's military parade A stark contrast emerged in attendance between the Trump administration's Army birthday parade in Washington, DC, and the sweeping 'No Kings' protests held nationwide. unbranded - Newsworthy Former President Barack Obama warned about a "weak commitment" to democracy by President Donald Trump's administration and the U.S. "drifting" into autocracy during a speech in Connecticut, according to media reports. Obama spoke with Boston College professor and popular newsletter writer Heather Cox Richardson at the The Bushnell Performing Arts Center in Hartford June 17. 'If you follow regularly what is said by those who are in charge of the federal government right now, there is a weak commitment to what we understood – and not just my generation, at least since World War II – our understanding of how a liberal democracy is supposed to work,' Obama said. Obama didn't mention Trump. But he worried about the nation "drifting into something that is not consistent with American democracy. It is consistent with autocracies.' "We're not there yet completely, but I think that we are dangerously close to normalizing behavior like that,' Obama said, according to reports. Trump's expansive use of executive power sparked more than 2,100 "No Kings" protests around the country June 14 that drew more than five million people, according to organizers. 'I don't feel like a king. I have to go through hell to get stuff approved,' Trump said when asked about the protests. Obama's speech was a rare public appearance for the former president. He has kept a relatively low profile since Trump took office for a second time and embarked on a tumultuous agenda. Amid stark political divisions, evidenced by violent protests in Los Angeles over Trump's deportation efforts and the assassination of a Minnesota Democratic lawmaker and her husband, Obama said he remains "optimistic." "I'm still the 'hope' guy,' he said.
