THE PRESIDENT HOLDS – AT 12:48 P.M. ET:  The pollsters are now starting their end-of-the year polls and their end-of-the-president's-first-two-years polls.  What is striking is how solid President Trump is.  No, his ratings are not all that great, but they are remarkably consistent.  He has a base of support that will not abandon him, no matter how much mud is thrown in his direction.  From Rasmussen: 

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Thursday shows that 49% of Likely U.S. Voters approve of President Trump’s job performance. Forty-eight percent (48%) disapprove. 

The latest figures include 35% who Strongly Approve of the way Trump is performing and 40% who Strongly Disapprove. This gives him a Presidential Approval Index rating of -5.

COMMENT:  Fox reports, in its poll:  "Overall, 46 percent of voters approve of the job Trump is doing and 52 percent disapprove.  In January, it was 45-53 percent.  Moreover, approval has barely budged all year, staying within the narrow range of 43 to 47 percent.

Some other polls show the president lower, but, on balance, he's about where Obama was at this point in his presidency.  The mainstream media keeps telling us that Mr. Trump is unpopular, but compared with whom?  Being in the mid-forties is not unusual. 

And Harry Truman ended his presidency with an approval rating in the twenties.

Approval ratings at this point in a presidency have little to do with re-election prospects.  The Dems have yet to mention a presidential candidate who can go the distance against Trump.

December 13,  2018