Trump's approval rating on North Korea rises – CBS News poll
By Jennifer De Pinto, Fred Backus, Kabir Khanna and Anthony Salvanto
President Trump's approval rating on his handling of North Korea has gotten a boost amid a potential meeting between Mr. Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un. And the number of Americans who feel uneasy about a potential conflict with North Korea continues to drop.
Fifty-one percent of Americans now approve of how the president is handling the situation with North Korea, up nine points from March, and his highest rating on this issue since taking office. Thirty-nine percent disapprove.
This increase in approval comes from Americans of all political stripes: Republicans, Democrats and independents. Still, partisan divisions remain overall: Most Republicans (90 percent) approve of how the president is handling the North Korea situation, while most Democrats (64 percent) disapprove.
Uneasiness about the possibility of conflict with North Korea continues to decline. Fifty-five percent now feel uneasy about that possibility, down from 64 percent in March and from 72 percent last year.
Here too, fewer Americans across the political spectrum feel uneasy now than they did in March. This is particularly the case among Republicans. Six in 10 Republicans are now confident the North Korea situation will resolve without conflict, compared to 45 percent who felt that way a couple of months ago. Most Democrats and independents still feel uneasy.
Those who disapprove of the president's handling of North Korea are more likely to be uneasy about the possibility of conflict.
Overall, Americans are twice as likely to think a meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong Un will make things between the two countries better than worse.
Most Republicans (66 percent) think it will make things better, while 1 in 5 Democrats agree.
This poll was conducted by telephone May 3-6, 2018 among a random sample of 1,101 adults nationwide. Data collection was conducted on behalf of CBS News by SSRS of Glen Mills, Pa. Phone numbers were dialed from samples of both standard land-line and cellphones.
The poll employed a random digit dial methodology. For the landline sample, a respondent was randomly selected from all adults in the household. For the cellphone sample, interviews were conducted with the person who answered the phone.
Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish using live interviewers. The data have been weighted to reflect U.S. Census figures on demographic variables.
The error due to sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The error for subgroups may be higher and is available by request. The margin of error includes the effects of standard weighting procedures which enlarge sampling error slightly.
This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.
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