By Jason Lange
WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's approval rating held at the lowest of his term in recent days as many Americans questioned his temperament amid the Iran war and a feud with Pope Leo, a Reuters/Ipsos poll found.
The six-day public opinion poll, concluded on Monday, showed only 36% of Americans approve of Trump's job performance, unchanged from a month earlier. Trump enjoyed the highest approval rating of his current term, 47%, shortly after he was sworn in to office on January 20, 2025.
Trump has been under pressure since his administration and Israel launched a war against Iran in February that has pushed gasoline prices sharply higher. Some 36% of Americans approve of U.S. military strikes against Iran, compared with 35% in a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted April 10-12. The latest poll of 4,557 U.S. adults nationwide, conducted online, had a margin of error of 2 percentage points.
The poll showed many Americans, including some members of Trump's Republican Party, have some concerns about the 79-year-old president's temperament and mental sharpness following a series of explosive outbursts.
Only 26% of Americans said they consider Trump "even-tempered." Republicans were divided on this question, with 53% considering him to be so and 46% saying he is not, while a handful declined to answer the question. Only 7% of Democrats saw Trump as even-tempered.
TRUMP'S PROFANE THREATS
Trump has exhibited agitation in recent weeks, posting a threat on social media to wipe out Iran's civilization while also attacking Pope Leo as weak on crime following the pontiff's criticism of the Iran war. Trump has threatened - even profanely - to destroy all of Iran's bridges and power plants.
He alarmed allies earlier this year by threatening military force against NATO ally Denmark over his demand for U.S. annexation of Greenland.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The latest Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted during a fragile ceasefire between Iran and the U.S. that was due to expire on Tuesday.
Some 51% of Americans - including 14% of Republicans, 54% of independents and 85% of Democrats - said Trump's mental sharpness had gotten "worse" over the past year.
TRUMP BLASTS POPE
Trump's attacks on Pope Leo have drawn attention in part because Americans have a generally higher opinion of the pontiff than they do of the president. Some 60% of respondents said they had a favorable view of Pope Leo, compared with 36% who said the same of Trump. They also viewed the pope more favorably than prominent Democrats including California Governor Gavin Newsom and former Vice President Kamala Harris.
The poll found only 16% of Americans back a U.S. exit from the NATO alliance, a move Trump has threatened.
The war with Iran triggered a surge in gasoline prices that has hit most Americans' personal finances. Trump's approval rating on his handling of the cost of living in the United States was 26%, tied for the lowest reading yet for him. Similarly, only 26% of respondents in the poll said the U.S. military action in Iran has been worth its costs.
Only 25% of respondents - including 6% of Democrats and 57% of Republicans - said they thought U.S. strikes on Iran would make America safer.
(Reporting by Jason Lange in Washington; editing by Scott Malone and Howard Goller)
