Following Trump’s record-breaking series of executive orders at the start of his second term, many of his administration’s actions are being held up in federal court as judges weigh whether or not they are legal.
With the status of some of these actions uncertain, 51% of Americans say Trump is doing too much by executive order, while 5% believe he is doing too little. About a quarter (27%) say Trump is doing about the right amount, with 16% unsure.
Democrats overwhelmingly say Trump is doing too much by executive order (80%). And while 51% of Republicans say he’s doing about the right amount, about two-in-ten say he’s doing too much (21%) or that they are unsure (20%).
Expectations for the administration’s response to federal courts
If a federal court rules that an action by the Trump administration is illegal, nearly eight-in-ten Americans (78%) say the administration has to follow the court’s ruling and stop its action. This includes an overwhelming majority of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents (91%), as well as most Republican and Republican leaners (65%).
When pressed further on whether the Trump administration would need to follow a Supreme Court ruling, even fewer say the administration could disregard rulings from both courts:
- Just 9% of Americans say the Trump administration would not need to stop an action ruled illegal by a federal court and by the Supreme Court.
- 10% say the administration would not have to abide by a federal court ruling blocking its action but would need to stop if the Supreme Court ruled it illegal.
Relatively small shares in both parties say the administration would be free to continue an action ruled illegal by the Supreme Court: Just 14% of Republicans and 4% of Democrats say that if the Supreme Court rules an action by the administration illegal, it does not have to follow the Supreme Court’s ruling.
We asked a separate half of survey respondents a slightly different question: Would it be a problem if the Trump administration refused to stop an action after the court ruled against it?
Responses follow a similar pattern:
- Democrats overwhelmingly say it would be a major problem if the Trump administration did not stop an action ruled illegal in federal court (89%).
- Three-quarters of Republicans say this would be either a major (39%) or minor (36%) problem.
Ethical standards of Trump administration officials
Americans offer mixed assessments on the ethical standards of Trump administration officials.
While 36% of adults rate the ethical standards of top administration officials as excellent or good, 43% rate them as poor. An additional 19% say their ethics are only fair.
Assessments of Trump officials’ ethics versus Biden officials’ ethics
Evaluations of Trump officials’ ethical standards are more negative than evaluations of Biden officials’ ethics were at this point in Biden’s presidency.
In April 2021, roughly half of Americans (52%) rated the ethical standards of Biden administration officials as excellent or good, while about a quarter each rated their ethics as only fair (22%) or poor (25%).
Public evaluations of Biden officials’ ethics declined later in his presidency. They were also less polarized than current evaluations of Trump officials: The share of Americans rating Trump officials’ ethics as excellent today is higher than the share saying this about Biden officials in 2023 (16% vs. 9%). But the share rating Trump officials’ ethics as poor is also higher than the share who rated Biden officials this way (43% vs. 32%).
Current ratings of Trump officials’ ethics are on par with those measured during his first term. And they’re lower than ratings of other presidential administrations measured in phone surveys dating back to the Reagan administration.
Republicans and Democrats have very different views of Trump officials’ ethical standards:
- Nearly seven-in-ten Republicans rate the ethical standards of Trump officials as excellent (32%) or good (37%), compared with 21% who say only fair and 9% who say poor.
- About eight-in-ten Democrats (78%) rate these officials’ ethics as poor, with just 6% saying they are excellent or good.
Americans’ trust in Trump’s statements
About half of Americans (48%) trust what Trump says less than previous presidents; a smaller share (32%) say they trust what he says more. About two-in-ten (19%) say they trust what Trump says about the same amount as previous presidents.
Democrats are far more skeptical than Republicans of the things Trump says: Democrats overwhelmingly trust what Trump says less than past presidents (82%), with just 6% saying they trust him more.
By comparison, a 60% majority of Republicans trust Trump more than past presidents. Republicans are also about twice as likely as Democrats to say they trust the things Trump says about the same amount as previous presidents (25% vs. 11%).
Who do Americans think Trump should represent?
In both parties, wide majorities say Trump should primarily focus on addressing the concerns of all Americans – even if it means disappointing some of his supporters – rather than focusing mainly on the concerns of his supporters.
Republicans overwhelmingly say Trump should focus on addressing the concerns of all Americans (81%), rather than just those who voted for him. More than nine-in-ten Democrats (93%) say the same.
