President Donald Trump remains a formidable political force in the United States.
But several developments in recent days suggest that the political dominance he has maintained over the Republican Party and much of American politics is facing growing resistance, with the midterm elections less than two months away.
The supreme court has blocked his attempt to impose new mail-in voting restrictions ahead of the November elections. The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates despite his repeated demands for lower rates. María Elvira Salazar, a Republican congresswoman from Florida who has Trump’s endorsement, has publicly told him that some of his immigration enforcement policies have gone too far.
The supreme court on September 14 denied the Trump administration’s request to lift a lower-court injunction blocking new restrictions on election ballot mail. The court said the government was unlikely to succeed on the merits of its challenge to the injunction.
The decision means the new rules will not apply to the 2026 elections.
The administration had sought to introduce new federal requirements for election mail through an executive order issued in March.
The Postal Service subsequently issued a final rule requiring federal election mail to carry specific features and requiring states to provide basic voter information through a Postal Service portal. A lower court blocked the rule from taking effect.
The supreme court’s September 14 order did not finally resolve the underlying legal dispute. It denied the administration’s request for an emergency stay, leaving the lower-court injunction in place for the 2026 elections.
Trump has repeatedly sought to change election administration and has long attacked mail voting. Mail ballots have accounted for nearly one-third of votes cast, making the rules governing them an important part of the approaching elections.
The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage point on September 16, taking it to a range of 3.75 per cent to 4 per cent. The decision was unanimous. The Fed said inflation remained elevated and that it was committed to returning inflation to its 2 per cent target.
Trump had been pressing for lower interest rates and said on September 16 that rates should be reduced to 1 per cent or lower.
The decision came under Kevin Warsh, the Fed chairman selected by Trump earlier this year. Warsh took the oath of office as chairman on May 22.
Reuters described Trump’s attack on the Fed’s decision as his most direct criticism yet of the central bank, while identifying Warsh as Trump’s handpicked appointee.
Salazar, who represents Florida’s heavily Hispanic 27th Congressional District, used her first general-election campaign advertisement to address Trump directly.
“Mr President, some of your immigration enforcement efforts have gone too far,” she said.
She warned that Hispanic voters who helped Trump return to the White House in 2024 feel betrayed and urged him to reconsider the advice he was receiving on immigration. Her district is 74 per cent Hispanic.
Salazar is a Republican seeking re-election and has Trump’s endorsement. Her decision to make the criticism part of a campaign advertisement places her publicly at odds with the president on immigration policy.
The September Marquette Law School national survey puts Trump’s job approval at 37 per cent, compared with 63 per cent who disapprove. At the beginning of his second term, 48 per cent approved of his performance.
The proportion of Americans who strongly approve of Trump’s performance has fallen from 29 per cent early in his second term to 15 per cent in September.
His ratings on the economy are weaker. Only 28 per cent approve of his handling of the economy, while 19 per cent approve of his handling of inflation and the cost of living. Inflation and the cost of living are the leading concerns among voters in the survey.
The generic congressional ballot also shows a change. Among likely voters, 54 per cent said they would vote for a Democratic candidate in their district, compared with 41 per cent for a Republican.
That is not a prediction of what will happen in November. Congressional elections are decided in individual districts, and a national generic ballot cannot determine the eventual balance of power in Congress.
Trump remains stronger on some of the issues that have defined his presidency. Marquette’s September survey puts his approval on immigration at 43 per cent and on border security at 49 per cent, considerably higher than his ratings on inflation and the economy.
Salazar is therefore creating distance from Trump on an issue on which he retains relatively stronger public ratings.
The supreme court has halted one of his election initiatives, the Federal Reserve has raised rates despite his demand for cuts, and a Republican congresswoman he endorsed has publicly criticised his immigration policies.
His overall approval has fallen from 48 per cent at the beginning of his second term to 37 per cent, while the share strongly approving of his performance has fallen from 29 per cent to 15 per cent.
His influence over Republican politicians, however, remains substantial.
Ladigbolu is a journalist based in Lagos.
Views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of TheCable.
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