Trump's Honeymoon Period in Second Term Could Be Ending
Concerns surrounding tariffs, the results from Wisconsin, and apprehensions from Senate Republicans are converging to create significant challenges for the White House.
TroibNews 
President Donald Trump’s honeymoon phase of his second term seems to be fading as he encounters global backlash to his tariffs and early signs of Republican discontent following a string of missteps and challenges for his administration.
Recent developments, including a significant decline in the stock market attributed to tariffs, followed a notable electoral defeat in Wisconsin for a candidate backed by Trump's advisor Elon Musk. This has ignited opposition among Senate Republicans regarding Trump’s economic policies, compounded by a Signal controversy that has jeopardized the perception that this term would be more professional and leak-proof.
Trump's assertive stance in his second term signals that he may not scale back his aggressive policies in response to initial turbulence. Despite calls for patience and a tolerance of short-term economic hardships from him and his senior aides, this is the same politician who, during last year’s campaign against former President Joe Biden, characterized high inflation as a “killer” for a presidency.
“He ran to lower prices and be a good steward of the economy. After less than three months, people are talking about a recession. People are anxious and many are angry,” remarked former Rep. Charlie Dent. “Raising the price of a car by $2,000 or $10,000 — that’s a lot of money to most people and they’re being awfully cavalier about that.”
This accumulation of errors has resulted in Trump’s lowest approval rating since regaining office—43 percent, as per a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll. This figure is down two points from a survey conducted March 21-23 and four points lower than his approval rating immediately post-inauguration.
Trump’s tariff strategy, which has left allies and many economists bewildered, may significantly hamper his presidency and complicate Republican efforts to push forward a broader agenda.
JP Morgan's initial evaluation of Trump’s tariff strategy described it as “the largest tax increase since the Revenue Act of 1968,” concluding that its “impact alone could take the economy perilously close to slipping into recession.”
Even though GOP lawmakers are aware of Trump’s readiness to challenge dissenting Republicans with primary contests, some expressed their concerns about economic conditions during Thursday's market plunge.
“It’s pretty rough right now,” Sen. Shelley Moore-Capito acknowledged. “We need to see where this is going to settle. He says it's a negotiation, let's see.”
Sen. Mitch McConnell, a long-time critic of tariffs, stressed that “trade wars with our partners hurt working people most.”
On Thursday, Senators Chuck Grassley and Maria Cantwell put forth legislation aimed at reinstituting restrictions on the president’s power to impose unilateral tariffs without congressional consent. This bill, which would require congressional approval for new tariffs within 60 days to prevent expiration, represents a significant move by lawmakers to regain control over Trump’s extensive use of executive authority since his return to the White House.
“For too long, Congress has delegated its clear authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce to the executive branch,” Grassley stated in an explanation of his effort to “ensure Congress has a voice in trade policy.”
Following Trump’s Rose Garden announcement on Wednesday evening, four Republican senators joined Democrats to vote against the president’s tariffs on Canada, marking a rare moment of bipartisan dissent.
Speaker Mike Johnson has no plans to advance a vote on this measure and continues to defer to Trump regarding economic strategy, despite special election results suggesting that Republicans could face formidable challenges in retaining their slim majority next November.
Yet, while Republicans framed their responses as indicative of negotiations surrounding the tariffs, the White House maintained that Trump is not inclined to back down.
“I don’t think there’s any plan for President Trump to back off these tariffs,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stated in a CNN interview. “This is the reordering of global trade.”
Trump appears to share this sentiment, likening the tariffs to a permanent medical procedure on Truth Social.
“THE OPERATION IS OVER! THE PATIENT LIVED, AND IS HEALING. THE PROGNOSIS IS THAT THE PATIENT WILL BE FAR STRONGER, BIGGER, BETTER, AND MORE RESILIENT THAN EVER BEFORE. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
Criticism of the tariffs has intensified as the White House struggles to mitigate the fallout from the Signal group chat debacle, which continues to generate a stream of negative reports. The administration's reluctance to own up to issues and correct sensitive communications has allowed the situation to fester.
When asked about the advancement of an investigation by the Department of Government Efficiency concerning the Signal leak, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt offered no specifics and stated the “case was closed.”
However, the issue remains a persistent challenge for Trump. The Pentagon’s Inspector General announced an investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's use of the app to discuss military strikes, with Hegseth, along with the White House, denying that any classified information was shared.
During his first term, Trump was highly sensitive to fluctuations in the stock market and responses from lawmakers on Capitol Hill, as well as electoral outcomes.
Republicans recently faced a setback in a critical race for a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat despite Musk’s $26 million attempt to unseat the Democrat-backed judge. Turnout was notably high, indicating strong Democratic mobilization in this crucial swing state that Trump narrowly won in 2024.
Moreover, while the GOP managed to retain two Florida seats vacated by Trump appointees, their margins were considerably smaller than anticipated.
This occurred before Trump introduced his tariffs, which could provoke a significant electoral backlash by next fall.
“Trump won because voters expected more progress from Trump and Republicans on [inflation] than from Biden and [Kamala] Harris. So, to start a trade war and have ‘short term pain’ as a fallback message, well, that's not much better than the ‘transitory’ inflation message that hurt Biden and the Democrats,” noted Kevin Madden, a GOP strategist in Washington and partner at the consulting firm Penta.
American voters have shown little patience or tolerance for economic sacrifices during peacetime. Madden added, “As Buddha once said: ‘Your problem is you think you have time.’ Congress has to return home to states and districts in just a few months. They may get an earful. Virginia and New Jersey have big statewide elections in the fall, and before you know it we are in a midterm election year.”
Meanwhile, beleaguered Democrats, reinvigorated by the Wisconsin election outcome and Senator Cory Booker’s record-setting 25-hour floor speech in New Jersey, believe that Trump’s reckless approach to the global economy could undermine what has traditionally been his strongest political asset.
“There is a significant group of voters who didn’t like Trump but figured he would be good on the economy. So they will likely be disabused of that notion now,” explained Caitlin Legacki, a Democratic strategist in Washington. “The question — and I think the answer is yes — is then whether Dems can provide an alternate theory of governance that doesn’t read this response as a mandate.”
Allen M Lee for TROIB News
Recent developments, including a significant decline in the stock market attributed to tariffs, followed a notable electoral defeat in Wisconsin for a candidate backed by Trump's advisor Elon Musk. This has ignited opposition among Senate Republicans regarding Trump’s economic policies, compounded by a Signal controversy that has jeopardized the perception that this term would be more professional and leak-proof.
Trump's assertive stance in his second term signals that he may not scale back his aggressive policies in response to initial turbulence. Despite calls for patience and a tolerance of short-term economic hardships from him and his senior aides, this is the same politician who, during last year’s campaign against former President Joe Biden, characterized high inflation as a “killer” for a presidency.
“He ran to lower prices and be a good steward of the economy. After less than three months, people are talking about a recession. People are anxious and many are angry,” remarked former Rep. Charlie Dent. “Raising the price of a car by $2,000 or $10,000 — that’s a lot of money to most people and they’re being awfully cavalier about that.”
This accumulation of errors has resulted in Trump’s lowest approval rating since regaining office—43 percent, as per a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll. This figure is down two points from a survey conducted March 21-23 and four points lower than his approval rating immediately post-inauguration.
Trump’s tariff strategy, which has left allies and many economists bewildered, may significantly hamper his presidency and complicate Republican efforts to push forward a broader agenda.
JP Morgan's initial evaluation of Trump’s tariff strategy described it as “the largest tax increase since the Revenue Act of 1968,” concluding that its “impact alone could take the economy perilously close to slipping into recession.”
Even though GOP lawmakers are aware of Trump’s readiness to challenge dissenting Republicans with primary contests, some expressed their concerns about economic conditions during Thursday's market plunge.
“It’s pretty rough right now,” Sen. Shelley Moore-Capito acknowledged. “We need to see where this is going to settle. He says it's a negotiation, let's see.”
Sen. Mitch McConnell, a long-time critic of tariffs, stressed that “trade wars with our partners hurt working people most.”
On Thursday, Senators Chuck Grassley and Maria Cantwell put forth legislation aimed at reinstituting restrictions on the president’s power to impose unilateral tariffs without congressional consent. This bill, which would require congressional approval for new tariffs within 60 days to prevent expiration, represents a significant move by lawmakers to regain control over Trump’s extensive use of executive authority since his return to the White House.
“For too long, Congress has delegated its clear authority to regulate interstate and foreign commerce to the executive branch,” Grassley stated in an explanation of his effort to “ensure Congress has a voice in trade policy.”
Following Trump’s Rose Garden announcement on Wednesday evening, four Republican senators joined Democrats to vote against the president’s tariffs on Canada, marking a rare moment of bipartisan dissent.
Speaker Mike Johnson has no plans to advance a vote on this measure and continues to defer to Trump regarding economic strategy, despite special election results suggesting that Republicans could face formidable challenges in retaining their slim majority next November.
Yet, while Republicans framed their responses as indicative of negotiations surrounding the tariffs, the White House maintained that Trump is not inclined to back down.
“I don’t think there’s any plan for President Trump to back off these tariffs,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stated in a CNN interview. “This is the reordering of global trade.”
Trump appears to share this sentiment, likening the tariffs to a permanent medical procedure on Truth Social.
“THE OPERATION IS OVER! THE PATIENT LIVED, AND IS HEALING. THE PROGNOSIS IS THAT THE PATIENT WILL BE FAR STRONGER, BIGGER, BETTER, AND MORE RESILIENT THAN EVER BEFORE. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!!!”
Criticism of the tariffs has intensified as the White House struggles to mitigate the fallout from the Signal group chat debacle, which continues to generate a stream of negative reports. The administration's reluctance to own up to issues and correct sensitive communications has allowed the situation to fester.
When asked about the advancement of an investigation by the Department of Government Efficiency concerning the Signal leak, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt offered no specifics and stated the “case was closed.”
However, the issue remains a persistent challenge for Trump. The Pentagon’s Inspector General announced an investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's use of the app to discuss military strikes, with Hegseth, along with the White House, denying that any classified information was shared.
During his first term, Trump was highly sensitive to fluctuations in the stock market and responses from lawmakers on Capitol Hill, as well as electoral outcomes.
Republicans recently faced a setback in a critical race for a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat despite Musk’s $26 million attempt to unseat the Democrat-backed judge. Turnout was notably high, indicating strong Democratic mobilization in this crucial swing state that Trump narrowly won in 2024.
Moreover, while the GOP managed to retain two Florida seats vacated by Trump appointees, their margins were considerably smaller than anticipated.
This occurred before Trump introduced his tariffs, which could provoke a significant electoral backlash by next fall.
“Trump won because voters expected more progress from Trump and Republicans on [inflation] than from Biden and [Kamala] Harris. So, to start a trade war and have ‘short term pain’ as a fallback message, well, that's not much better than the ‘transitory’ inflation message that hurt Biden and the Democrats,” noted Kevin Madden, a GOP strategist in Washington and partner at the consulting firm Penta.
American voters have shown little patience or tolerance for economic sacrifices during peacetime. Madden added, “As Buddha once said: ‘Your problem is you think you have time.’ Congress has to return home to states and districts in just a few months. They may get an earful. Virginia and New Jersey have big statewide elections in the fall, and before you know it we are in a midterm election year.”
Meanwhile, beleaguered Democrats, reinvigorated by the Wisconsin election outcome and Senator Cory Booker’s record-setting 25-hour floor speech in New Jersey, believe that Trump’s reckless approach to the global economy could undermine what has traditionally been his strongest political asset.
“There is a significant group of voters who didn’t like Trump but figured he would be good on the economy. So they will likely be disabused of that notion now,” explained Caitlin Legacki, a Democratic strategist in Washington. “The question — and I think the answer is yes — is then whether Dems can provide an alternate theory of governance that doesn’t read this response as a mandate.”
Allen M Lee for TROIB News
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