Quote (IceMage @ 25 Mar 2019 00:46)
Has it though? I don't think Trump's weak approval rating can be explained by the Russia investigation. It's explained by his behavior in office... he's an incredibly divisive president. And he's still maintained a very high approval rating among Republicans. His lukewarm start to his presidency can't be blamed on Mueller... he's incompetent.
look here:
https://projects.fivethirtyeight.com/trump-approval-ratings/?ex_cid=rrpromoat first, trump had decent approval ratings. they take a first dive after the botched roll out of the travel ban, then recover a bit. then, on the 5th of may 2017, the day he fired Comey, his approval rating peaks at 42.3%, before a steep downhill trend sets in in the aftermatch of comey/the launch of the mueller probe. it would take him over a year, until the 17th of may 2018, before his approval ratings reached the same level again. and that was on the heels of several months of nonstop news about how great the economy and the stock markets were doing.
I'm not so sure if 3 republican senators vote against his healthcare reform in the summer of 2017 if his approval ratings are, say, 45% instead of 37%. I'm not so sure if he is as divisive and defensive and toxic throughout his presidency if he doesnt feel besieged all the time.
So you're probably right in that his chaotic and rather unproductive first year in office cant be entirely explained/excused by the Mueller probe, but imho, it certainly contributed. Just as it certainly helped at the margins in the Democrats' 2018 victory.