Trump is scheduled to visit Texas, Ohio and Tennessee in the coming weeks, officials said. He is trying to counter negative views about the economy.
SCOTUS tariff decision could mean years of litigation over refunds
After the Supreme Court overturned President Donald Trump’s authority to impose emergency tariffs, the president said he would impose new 10% tariffs worldwide.
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump is expected to leave the country after his State of the Union address on February 24 to tout his economic policies, with Texas likely his first stop ahead of a crucial Senate primary race that top Republicans are concerned about, a White House official said.
Trump is scheduled to hold an event in Texas later this week focused on energy policy and the economy, the official said, and the visit was part of an ongoing effort to raise awareness of the president’s efforts to lower costs for average Americans.
His visit coincides with early voting in the Lone Star State ahead of the March 3 Senate Republican primary, where incumbent Republican Sen. John Cornyn faces a tough challenge in his bid to return to Washington.
On February 23, the Federal Aviation Administration issued a “VIP Removal” notice to Corpus Christi, Texas. This notice indicates impending aviation restrictions related to presidential travel.
The White House is also considering a trip by the president to Ohio and Tennessee in the coming weeks to counter Americans’ negative views of Trump’s management of the economy, the official said. Vice President J.D. Vance and other Cabinet members will also be fanned out to reinforce the message, something House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries recently said was welcome, implying they would not be an asset in battleground states.
The State of the Union address is often a launching pad for presidents to impose their vision on the nation, but Trump’s Feb. 24 speech marked a key moment when he lost traction on the economy, which is expected to be an issue in the 2026 midterm elections.
The president and his advisers have cited a booming stock market, falling inflation and better-than-expected job creation as signs of a booming economy. But the cost of living remains a top concern for most Americans, and Democrats have taken up the issue, driving it to a string of electoral victories last year.
In recent weeks, President Trump has visited Iowa and Georgia to promote his economic policies. He held rallies in North Carolina and Pennsylvania late last year. The president referenced his Feb. 19 State of the Union address in Georgia, telling attendees he was going to talk about affordability.
“They created the affordability problem, and we solved it. And we’ll be lower still, but we solved it,” Trump said of Democrats. “And I think our country is going to be the greatest country ever, within the next 12 months, maybe sooner, within the next 12 months.”
low evaluation of the economy
The State of the Union offers new opportunities as the White House ramps up its economic pitch as Republicans look ahead to a tough midterm environment for the party. But polls show there is no breakthrough.
Two new large-scale polls show President Trump’s approval rating is below 40%, as Americans continue to express pessimism about the president’s tariffs and the economy. According to a Washington Post, ABC News, and Ipsos poll released on February 20, President Trump’s favorability rating reached 39%, with about 4 in 10 Americans saying they approve of President Trump’s economic policies.
Even fewer respondents (32%) rate him positively on inflation, and 34% say they support Trump’s tariffs. A CNN poll released on the eve of the annual address found Trump’s approval rating at 36%, with 32% of Americans saying he has the right priorities.
At a White House event on February 23, the president acknowledged the troubling numbers. President Trump told attendees at an event for relatives of Americans killed by people without legal status in the United States that he was “surprised” there was “no more support” for his administration’s policies.
“The fact is, we have silent support. It’s silent,” Trump said. He then referred to a “fake poll” that had just been released, saying his approval rating was 40%.
“My approval rating is not 40%. It’s much higher than that. I mean, I’m willing to run against anyone,” said Trump, who is term-limited.
According to an Ipsos poll, President Trump’s biggest issue is his handling of the U.S.-Mexico border, with an approval rating of 47% and a disapproval rating of 50%.
If President Trump spends more time talking about this issue, negative sentiment about the economy could lessen. As of October, 52% of Americans said the economy had worsened since President Trump took office. In the February survey, 48% of respondents said the same, indicating a significant change in President Trump’s direction.
But the president has struggled to stick to his message, pivoting to claims about election fraud and other topics during a Feb. 19 speech in Georgia. And a central pillar of his economic policy was recently shattered when the Supreme Court ruled that he could not use emergency powers to enact tariffs.
“We risk losing Texas.”
As primary season begins, the battle for the 2026 midterm elections is heating up, with Texas an early focus. The president’s visit to Texas is scheduled days before the state’s March 3 primary, which Trump has not yet endorsed.
Mr. Cornyn is trying to fend off key challenges from Attorney General Ken Paxton and Representative Wesley Hunt. Senate Republican leaders have urged President Trump to support Cornyn, saying he is a strong candidate to win a fifth term in the general election, but the president has said he likes all three Republicans in the race. White House officials said the event was not focused on the primary, but did not rule out an endorsement.
Cornyn, who served as Texas attorney general and state Supreme Court justice before becoming a senator in 2002, is a longtime Republican establishment figure and party leader, but he faces a tough primary battle. Real Clear Politics’ average of recent polls has Mr. Paxton receiving 30% of the vote, Mr. Cornyn in 28th place and Mr. Hunt in 20th place. If no candidate receives more than 50% support, the race will go to a runoff.
Senate Minority Leader John Thune and the Republican National Senatorial Committee have endorsed Cornyn. Some Republicans worry that a loss in the primary for Mr. Cornyn could make it difficult for him to hold on to his Senate seat in a state that Republicans have dominated for decades.
“He’s in danger of losing Texas,” five-term Representative Don Bacon, a Nebraska Republican, recently told USA TODAY about Trump’s lack of support for Cornyn.
Losing Texas would be a huge blow to Republicans and could put Democrats within reach of the Senate majority. According to the Texas Tribune, Texas has not elected a Democratic senator to the state since 1988. The state’s large Latino population makes it an attractive target for the party, but it remains out of reach. Democrat Beto O’Rourke trailed Sen. Ted Cruz by just 2.6 percentage points in 2018.
In Texas, two Democrats, Rep. Jasmine Crockett and state Rep. James Talarico, are vying for the party’s nomination, a race that will question the direction of the Democratic Party in the Trump era.
President Trump supports 14 of the 17 Republican senators up for election this year, but not Cornyn.
“The truth is, I like all three of them. I like all three of them,” Trump said on February 16 of the Texas Republican Senate candidates. “These are the toughest races. They’re all supporting me. They’re all good, so you’re supposed to pick one. So we’ll see what happens. But I support all three.”
Posted by: Christina Webb
