Trump no longer has Americans' consent to run the country: scholar

Donald Trump, in the 2024 presidential election, not only attracted his hardcore MAGA base — he also expanded his appeal, winning over newcomers who included Latinos, independents, swing voters, tech bros, the Manosphere and Generation Z. It was still a close election; Trump won the national popular vote by roughly 1.5 percent, but he returned to the White House on January 20, 2025 with a lot of converts who were willing to give him a chance.

Fourteen months into his second presidency, however, Trump is suffering from low approval ratings in poll after poll.

In an op-ed published by The Hill on March 23, John Kenneth White — a professor emeritus at the Catholic University of America and author of the 2024 book "Grand Old Unraveling: The Republican Party, Donald Trump, and the Rise of Authoritarianism" — argues that Trump now lacks the "consent of the governed."

"The Trump presidency is over," White writes. "Those words seem harsh and, perhaps, overstated. But Donald Trump is governing without the consent of the governed. Most polls show Trump's approval hovering around the 40 percent mark. But behind these numbers is a presidency in distress. On handling inflation and the cost of living and immigration — issues that matter to voters — Trump has dismal scores. In 2024, voters elected Trump to do four things: curb inflation, restore the economic conditions that prevailed before the COVID-19 pandemic, deport individuals living in the U.S. illegally with criminal records, and keep the U.S. out of any possible forever wars. He has failed on all counts."

White adds, "His tariffs have raised prices, inflation persists, Immigration and Customs Enforcement is deporting people indiscriminately and Trump has started a war of choice with Iran."

White argues that while some U.S. presidents bounced back from bumps in the road —Ronald Reagan after Iran-Contra, Bill Clinton after the red wave of the 1994 midterms — others suffered irreparable damage, such as Jimmy Carter with the Iranian Hostage Crisis. And White puts Trump in the latter category.

"Presidents who don't recover can't change the subject," White observes. "(Lyndon B.) Johnson couldn't get the public’s mind off the Vietnam War. (Richard) Nixon was undone by the daily revelations of the Watergate scandal. Carter couldn't get the public's mind off the hostages in Iran…. For the next two years, Trump will retain the powers of the presidency. He can veto bills, issue pardons and executive orders and even wage war. But he will govern without the consent of the governed."

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