US President Donald Trump gives his State of the Union address today. Photo / Getty Images
United States President Donald Trump has taken a torrent of actions in his second term, including issuing more than 220 executive orders, imposing sweeping tariffs, pushing a massive tax and spending bill, and stepping up an immigration crackdown in major cities.
It can be difficult to know what things Americans are paying attention to that are potentially shaping their judgment of Trump’s job performance.
To discover which Trump measures stand out to the public, a Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll asked more than 2300 Americans to name the best and worst things he has done since January 2025.
People who support Trump - 39% of US adults in the poll approved of his job performance - were asked to describe his best actions, while the 60% of Americans who disapproved were asked to name his worst actions.
Here’s what Trump’s supporters and opponents said.
Participants’ answers have been lightly edited for clarity and style.
About eight in 10 Americans who approve of Trump cited immigration policies as his best action, far outranking all other topics.
More than four in 10 Trump supporters mentioned the economy, with some offering general praise (25%) while others cited tariffs (14%) or lower prices (9%).
Smaller numbers of Trump supporters mentioned tax cuts or his One Big Beautiful Bill, cuts to federal spending and the workforce, or peace deals.
West Virginia man, 59, Republican
Illinois man, 69, independent
California woman, 56, independent
North Carolina woman, 55, Republican
Kentucky man, 51, independent
A 57% majority of Americans who disapprove of Trump cited immigration policies when asked to describe his worst actions as president.
The economy ranked second at 33%, with the vast majority citing tariffs specifically (29%).
About 22% of Trump opponents cited corruption, violating the US Constitution or politicising the Justice Department.
Others criticised his handling of international relations, the Epstein files, management of government agencies or the way he has run the US military.
Pennsylvania man, 59, Democrat
Florida woman, 76, Democrat
New York woman, 88, Democrat
Missouri woman, 35, independent
Georgia woman, 53, Democrat
Trump’s supporters and opponents focused on different aspects of his immigration policy when describing his best and worst actions.
Trump opponents were more likely than his supporters to mention immigration enforcement, 50% to 32%. Far more Trump supporters mentioned border security, 42% to less than 1% of Trump opponents.
The poll found Americans with clear ideological identities were more focused on Trump’s immigration actions.
Among supporters, 83% who identify as “very conservative” and 85% who are “somewhat conservative” mentioned immigration policy as one of the best things he has done, compared with 66% of moderate Trump supporters.
Similarly, 71% of Trump opponents who identify as “very liberal” cited immigration, compared with 63% who are somewhat liberal and 52% of moderates.
The survey also found an age gap on immigration among Trump critics.
Among those who disapprove of him, 70% of those aged 18-29 cited immigration as one of Trump’s worst actions, compared with 60% of those in their 30s and about half of those 40 and older.
Among Trump supporters, younger people were somewhat less likely to cite immigration as one of his best actions.
This pattern aligns with other results from the Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll, which found that younger Americans were more likely than their elders to disapprove of Trump on immigration and his overall job performance.
Overall, Trump’s approval rating for handling immigration has declined from 50% to 40% over the past year.
Trump is expected to focus on immigration policies in his State of the Union address today.
In a sign of his potential focus, on Tuesday he attended a vigil at the White House that highlighted victims of crimes committed by undocumented immigrants.
This Washington Post-ABC News-Ipsos poll was conducted between February 12-17 among 2589 US adults, including 2309 who answered a question asking those who approve of Trump to describe his best actions and those who disapprove to describe his worst actions.
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