Takeaways from Trump's tough week, as war and gas prices take a toll

## Summary
Analysis Politics Takeaways from Trump's tough week, as war and gas prices take a toll April 3, 2026 5:00 AM ET Domenico Montanaro President Trump speaks from the Cross Hall of the White House on April 1. Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images From the courts and the firing of his attorney general to tariffs, gas prices and the war in Iran, this week highlighted multiple stressors that are putting significant political pressure on President Trump in this second term. Tariffs, plus surging gas prices as a result of the war, have led to just a 31% approval of Trump's handling of the economy in a new CNN/SSRS poll out this week. This is a president, after all, who was elected for a second time in large measure by promising to fix high prices and stay out of wars. "We will measure our success not only by the battles we win," he said during his second inaugural address, "but also by the wars that we end — and perhaps most importantly, the wars we never get into." trump administration Pam Bondi CPB White House birthright citizenship U.S. war in Iran Tariffs Facebook Flipboard Email

## Article Content
Analysis
Politics
Takeaways from Trump's tough week, as war and gas prices take a toll
April 3, 2026
5:00 AM ET
Domenico Montanaro
President Trump speaks from the Cross Hall of the White House on April 1. Trump used the prime-time address to update the nation on the war in Iran.
Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images
hide caption
toggle caption
Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images
From the courts and the firing of his attorney general to tariffs, gas prices and the war in Iran, this week highlighted multiple stressors that are putting significant political pressure on President Trump in this second term.
Trump was already at a low point coming into this week, and he's hit a new one — a job approval rating at 39%
in an average of the polls
.
And, as Trump remains focused on an
unpopular war
with no clear end in sight, his approval rating is
even worse
on the issue voters continue to say they care about most: the economy.
So what happened over the last seven days and what does it mean? Here's a look:
Saturday
Millions
turned out for more than 3,000 anti-Trump "No Kings" rallies
across the country, from New York to Los Angeles, Minnesota to Texas. Ex-pats even
rallied overseas
in Paris, London and Lisbon, Portugal.
Intensity of opposition to Trump is as high, or higher, than it's ever been. A recent
Fox News poll
, for example, found the highest level of disapproval of the president in its survey across both of his terms (59%) with nearly half saying they "strongly" disapprove.
It also found 58% of respondents disapprove of the war in Iran.
Tuesday
Gas prices hit $4 a gallon on average. They have
leapt 37%, or more than $1 a gallon
, since the start of the Iran war.
Business
Gas crosses $4 a gallon in the U.S. for the first time in 3 years
Trump also saw losses in two court cases: one related to
funding for public media
, the other about his
White House ballroom construction
. Later in the week, the National Capital Planning Commission, packed with Trump appointees,
gave its own approval
of the
plans
for the project.
Wednesday
Trump became
the first known sitting president
to go to the Supreme Court for oral arguments. He went to hear a case at the heart of his hard-line immigration approach. On Day 1 of his second term, he signed an executive order calling for birthright citizenship — which is written into the 14th Amendment of the Constitution — to no longer be granted to babies born on U.S. soil to immigrants who crossed the border illegally.
A majority of the Supreme Court justices, including the three conservatives he appointed in his first term,
seemed skeptical of the government's case
and voiced significant concerns.
Law
Who is an American? The Supreme Court will decide
Trump stayed for his side's argument and then walked out shortly after the challengers began making theirs.
He later posted to his social media platform: "We are the only Country in the World STUPID enough to allow 'Birthright' Citizenship!" (Roughly three dozen countries have birthright citizenship laws.)
Then, Trump delivered eyebrow-raising remarks
during a private event at the White House
.
Noting that the U.S. is "fighting wars," Trump said, "It's not possible for us to take care of day care, Medicaid, Medicare, all these individual things. They can do it on a state basis. You can't do it on a federal [basis]. We have to take care of one thing: military protection. We have to guard the country."
The comments reflected Trump's priorities — and the heavy gravitational pull of war.
That night, he gave a prime-time address on the war with Iran. On the expectation that Trump would offer a path to the war's end, markets rallied.
His speech offered no such clear exit. Afterward, stock futures were down. A speech apparently designed to reassure the public and calm Wall Street jitters had the
opposite effect
.
Middle East conflict
Trump makes his case for war with Iran, saying the conflict is 'nearing completion'
Thursday
It was the one-year anniversary of his "
Liberation Day
" when Trump leveled high tariffs on countries throughout the world. Trump has suffered politically for it, as polling has shown majorities say Trump's policies, specifically his tariffs, are
making
things
worse
.
Tariffs, plus surging gas prices as a result of the war, have led to just a 31% approval of Trump's handling of the economy in a
new CNN/SSRS poll
out this week. That's his lowest mark on an issue that was a strength in his first term — and a major reason he won a second term.
Economy
Have Trump's tariffs worked? This is where things stand a year after 'Liberation Day'
On the heels of Trump's Wednesday night address, oil prices spiked and stocks were trading sharply lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down more than
600 points
. Stocks
recovered after Iranian state media reported
that the country was working with Oman on a protocol to "monitor" ships going through the Strait of Hormuz.
By
1:17 p.m. ET
, Trump announced Attorney General Pam Bondi was out at the Jus

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## Expert Analysis

### Merits
- Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images hide caption toggle caption Alex Brandon/Pool/Getty Images From the courts and the firing of his attorney general to tariffs, gas prices and the war in Iran, this week highlighted multiple stressors that are putting significant political pressure on President Trump in this second term.
- A majority of the Supreme Court justices, including the three conservatives he appointed in his first term, seemed skeptical of the government's case and voiced significant concerns.
- This is a president, after all, who was elected for a second time in large measure by promising to fix high prices and stay out of wars. "We will measure our success not only by the battles we win," he said during his second inaugural address, "but also by the wars that we end — and perhaps most importantly, the wars we never get into." trump administration Pam Bondi CPB White House birthright citizenship U.S. war in Iran Tariffs Facebook Flipboard Email

### Areas for Consideration
- And, as Trump remains focused on an unpopular war with no clear end in sight, his approval rating is even worse on the issue voters continue to say they care about most: the economy.
- That's his lowest mark on an issue that was a strength in his first term — and a major reason he won a second term.
- Bondi has been at the center of controversy around the incomplete release of the files related to Jeffrey Epstein, the firings of multiple Justice Department lawyers who prosecuted Jan. 6 defendants and career prosecutors who investigated Trump , while also launching investigations of several of Trump's perceived political enemies and fiercely defending the president.

### Implications
- The Supreme Court will decide Trump stayed for his side's argument and then walked out shortly after the challengers began making theirs.
- Tariffs, plus surging gas prices as a result of the war, have led to just a 31% approval of Trump's handling of the economy in a new CNN/SSRS poll out this week.
- During his prime-time address, he offered no clear goals or timeline for when the war will be over.
- Trump's policies could hurt for years to come Trump also said the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil passes, would "open up naturally.

### Expert Commentary
This article covers trump, war, iran topics. Notable strengths include discussion of trump. Areas of concern are also raised. Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 0.0. Word count: 1329.