It was found that two-thirds of viewers gave a positive assessment of U.S. President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address, which was the longest in history. However, there was also a considerable amount of skepticism regarding his ability to manage the economy and inflation.
On February 25 (local time), CNN released the results of a poll conducted by the research firm SSRS, targeting viewers immediately after the address. According to the survey, 38% of respondents rated the speech as “very positive,” and 25% as “somewhat positive.” The total share of positive responses was 64%.
This is somewhat lower compared with past figures. During President Trump’s congressional address last year, the positive rating was 69%, and after each of his three addresses in his first term in office, it exceeded 70%. It is similar to the positive rating (65%) for former President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address in March 2024.
State of the Union addresses are typically watched mainly by supporters of the sitting president, so the share of positive evaluations tends to be relatively high. In this survey as well, trust in President Trump’s policies rose within the group that watched the speech.
In response to the question, “Do you think President Trump’s policies will lead the country in the right direction?”, 54% answered positively before the address. After the address, that figure rose by 10 percentage points to 64%. The share of respondents saying he “has the right priorities” also increased from 44% to 54%. CNN analyzed that “the address appears to have had a rallying effect on viewers.”
However, concerns were detected in the economic sphere. In response to the question, “Is the president focusing enough on the economy and inflation issues?”, 45% answered that he is focusing “too little.” In addition, 40% said they “do not believe President Trump will stabilize inflation.”
Regarding tariff policy, 49% responded that “the president is abusing his authority,” indicating a nearly half-and-half negative assessment.
This survey was conducted via text message among 482 U.S. adults who said they watched the State of the Union address. The margin of sampling error is ±5.5 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
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