Trump's 1st month in White House: magic realism or hallucinatory realism
People take part in an "Not My President's Day" rally in Manhattan, New York, US February 20, 2017. [Photo/Agencies] |
Monday is a federal holiday called President's Day, memorizing first US Persident George Washington's birthday. On this ocassion, tens of thousands of protesters held "Not my President's Day" demonstrations in Washington D.C., New York, Baltimore, Chicago, Los Angeles and some other US cities.
The new outcry follows Women's March on Jan 21, nationwide protests over his court-frozen travel ban on global refugees and certain immigrants after his first week in presidency, as well as "Day without Immigrants" closing down by many schools, shops and restaurants across the country days ago.
Meanwhile, Trump tries to show his popularity among Republican supporters. Over the weekend, estimated 9,000 people attended his first campaign-style rally since inauguration at a hangar in southeastern state of Florida, hailing Trump when he announced his first month in presidency has already made "incredible progress".
A Gallup poll over the weekend finds Trump's 40 percent job approval is 21 points below the historic average for elected presidents around mid-February, while Rasmussen's latest Daily Presidential Tracking Poll gives Trump a 55 percent approval number.
However, Trump's job approval ratings are low largely because few Democrats -- currently eight percent, evaluate the job he is doing positively. Among Republicans, he wins 87 percent approval rating, higher than the 83 percent historical average approval presidents have got from their party backers at this point, the Gallup poll shows.