A top Trump administration official blasted Fox News’ pollster during a live interview on the network when he was confronted about President Donald Trump’s dismal poll numbers.
Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment via email.
Why It Matters
Trump swept into his second term with high favorability ratings among the American public, particularly on the economy, but his poll numbers have plummeted in recent weeks as the administration faces sharp criticism over its shifting tariff policies and concerns about rising inflation.
The president’s declining polling numbers also come as the 2026 midterms are approaching and risk losing him much of the political clout he carried in his return to the White House.
Mark Schiefelbein/AP
What To Know
Stephen Miller, White House deputy chief of staff for policy and a longtime Trump loyalist, was grilled about the president’s low poll numbers during a Fox News interview marking Trump’s first 100 days in office.
Network anchor John Roberts said that in a recent Fox News poll, Trump got “big marks” for his handling of border security (55 percent approval) and immigration (47 percent approval).
“But everything else, he is sort of underwater and particularly on the economy, tariffs and inflation, he’s well underwater,” Roberts told Miller. “You’ve still got some work to do on that front.”
“A lot of people think that he’s spending too much time on tariffs and not enough time on the economy and lowering prices,” Roberts added. “What do you say?”
Miller brushed off the criticism, saying, “I don’t want to make things awkward for you, John, but it is our opinion that Fox News needs to fire its pollster.”
“I won’t surprise you with that,” he added. “I don’t think you are surprised I’m saying that, but the Fox News pollster has always been wrong about President Trump.”
Reached for comment, Fox News pointed Newsweek to Roberts’ comments after the interview: “You might have been watching earlier when Stephen Miller joined us here on ‘America Reports.’ He made a remark that was critical of our polling, but here at Fox News we stand by our polling as we always have.”
Miller went on to criticize the network’s pollster for its 2024 election polls, saying of the most recent survey, “We don’t acknowledge any of that polling.”
The Trump adviser also touted the administration’s handling of immigration, calling it “so significant” and adding that “the last four years were defined by this unceasing flow of illegal aliens across the border … how much did you cover it on Fox?”
“Here we are 100 days in and we have the lowest border crossings in American history,” Miller, who is one of the strongest advocates of the Trump administration’s hardline immigration and border security policies, told Roberts.
Miller has been at the forefront of the administration’s public relations campaign, getting into frequent spats with Democrats, Trump critics and journalists over the administration’s handling of immigration, its tariff policies and its efforts to dramatically shrink the federal bureaucracy.
The Fox News poll echoed other recent surveys.
A CNN poll conducted by SSRS found that Trump’s approval rating of 41 percent 100 days into his term is the lowest any president has had in more than 70 years.
The poll was conducted from April 17 to April 24 and surveyed 1,678 respondents. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.9 percentage points.
In a new NPR/PBS News/Marist poll, nearly half the respondents—45 percent—gave Trump an F for his handling of his first 100 days in office, while just 23 percent gave him an A.
The survey of 1,439 adults was conducted from April 21 to April 23 and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3.3 percentage points.
What People Are Saying
Miller said during Tuesday’s interview: “I think even you, if we’re being honest, were surprised how quickly we went from an open border to a sealed border. That surely ranks not only one of the greatest achievements of this president but any president.”
What Happens Next
Trump is slated to hold a rally celebrating his first 100 days at 6 p.m. ET in Michigan, a state he won twice, in 2016 and 2024.
Update 4/29/25 6:24 p.m. ET: This story has been updated with additional information and context.
