Trump Fatigue Syndrome Is Crushing Trump’s Popularity and Poll Numbers

Nov 1, 2026 12:13 PM EST, Sun

Trump is entering the washed-up rock star phase of his presidency

He’s still playing the old hits, but the crowds aren’t there. And when Trump’s down, he lashes out.

By Matthew Bartlett

Nov. 1, 2026, 6:00 AM EST

The end is here, the beginning is near. After two brutal years of utter nonsense, abuse and neglect at home and abroad, for the president and his party, gravity is not just settling in, it is crashing down. As Election Day approaches, it is clear the country is completely fed up with Trump — and absolutely furious with Republicans.

The closing days of President Donald Trump’s midterm tour has him retreating into deep red states trying to save House and Senate seats that were once unimaginable to lose — Texas, Kansas, Iowa, Alaska, even South Carolina and Mississippi. So chaotic is Trump’s political operation that it cancelled in-person rallies in Kansas and Iowa, before promptly uncancelling them, as the president’s handlers try to cram in more telerallies that don’t require more air travel for the 80-year-old chief executive.

After a decade of Donald Trump on the political scene, he is entering his “Fat Elvis” phase: tired, old, overweight, awful-sounding, embarrassing-looking. There are suspicious minds even among the MAGA base. He is caught in a trap, can’t walk out and many don’t believe a word he’s saying.

What we do know is that when things go bad, the president gets worse. He orders bogus prosecutions. He picks fights with allies, and sides with dictators while he starts a war that he can’t win, can’t end and may escalate again.

A presidency in decline is no way to run a country, much less a midterm election campaign. His numbers, like his second term, are unrecoverable. There are no successes to point to, no actionable agenda to promise.

In desperation, the president has resorted to Santa-like promises of new business openings, oil pipelines and cash bonuses that are unlikely to ever materialize. But what may have worked in 2024 does not work in 2026, and voters don’t believe in Santa anymore.

Trump’s return to power has been defined by rising costs, international conflict and brazen corruption. He has shattered norms in government, neglected the economy and remains indifferent to the economic angst of living in America all while he is obsessed with vanity projects in what he proclaims is the “golden age.”

Regardless of what happens on Tuesday, the next two years will be politically torturous. Large questions exist of how a likely-divided government will function, or not, and what Democrats may do, or not do, on everything from oversight to affordability with one or both chambers of power.

What we do know is that when things go bad, the president gets worse. He orders bogus prosecutions. He picks fights with allies, and sides with dictators while he starts a war that he can’t win, can’t end and may escalate again. And the only time he is upset about corruption is when he doesn’t benefit from it.

Partisan fights on Capitol Hill will intensify, just as the 2028 presidential campaign begins immediately following the midterms. And in the highly likely event he runs, Vice President Vance will have an increasingly difficult time running for president while serving as Trump’s loyal wingman. He’ll find himself caught between an unhinged president and an unhappy public.

However the balance of power shakes out, right now the country desperately needs leadership. America needs a president. Not just a person, but a purpose. In our politics of the moment, discord and resentment motivates, defines and divides us. It is easier to be against something than for something, especially when you are not in power.

We are in the middle of a great flood and searching for that rainbow. And just maybe, through the chaos and tumult there may be a leader who offers a different path, not by riding the waves of political division but by parting the waters. A better way to better days, one day.

The midterms may be coming to an end, and the Trump presidency may be too, but the next two years will give rise to what is next for America. Trump will still be in office and will still have the power to inflict damage and sow chaos in our nation. Yet through Trump’s twilight, the process of choosing the next president will allow Americans the chance to define and maybe defy the future. And the sun always rises on the horizon.

Matthew Bartlett is an MS NOW political analyst. He served as a Trump appointee at the State Department in the first administration.

  1. Katie Zacharia lasted less than half a Scaramucci2 as White House Press Press Secretary. 2026-10-12 – 2026-10-16 ↩

  2. Anthony Scaramucci / LinkedIn White House Press Communications Director. 2007-07-21 – 2007-07-31 ↩

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