Super Bowl Politics
February 10, 2025RCP Podcast: Super Bowl Politics, Dems Challenge DOGE, Trump's Record Approval Ratings, End of the Penny?
Monday on the RealClearPolitics radio show -- weeknights at 6:00 p.m. on SiriusXM's POTUS Channel 124 and then on Apple, Spotify, and here on our website -- Andrew Walworth, Tom Bevan, and Carl Cannon discuss the politics behind the biggest football game of the year. From President Trump’s appearance at the game and his pre-game interview to the Taylor Swift factor, and the changing ideology displayed by the NFL.
In the second segment, starting around minute 12, the not-so-subtle political messages in some of Sunday night's Super Bowl ads. Nike, Lays, Jeep, and other advertisers tried to make a splash. Did they make any real points or just catch our attention?
Next, around minute 25, back to Washington, where legal challenges to DOGE have halted many of the administration's recent activities. Trump's argument that waste, fraud, and abuse should be identified and eliminated seems like common sense. Is opposing this a good political move for Democrats?
Also, should the U.S. stop producing pennies?
Finally, starting around minute 36, Tom Bevan talks with RCP senior elections analyst Sean Trende about a new CBS/YouGov poll released this weekend showing President Trump with a 53% approval rating -- his highest ever.
"In our RealClearPolitics Average, we have Trump at 49%, with 46% disapproval. There are a number of polls that show him in the high 40s and around 50, now this CBS poll has him over 50%. When he took office in 2017, I don't think he ever had an approval rating over 50, certainly not in our average. I think he was only above water for like a day or two, and then he was underwater his entire presidency," Tom Bevan commented. "So this looks like a pretty dramatic shift."
"I don't think there is any doubt he's getting a honeymoon this time," added Sean Trende. "Not many people, myself included, expected that."
"We held the idea that he left office very unpopular, after having been unpopular, and everyone already knows him," Trende added. "That's what we told ourselves over and over again during the last election, that Trump was a known quantity. Maybe that was an oversimplification. It seems like a lot of people think he's grown into the job and are giving him a second look."
"He's actually doing stuff. We haven't seen a president actually doing stuff in quite some time," Trende added. "Just the fact that he is energetic and seems to be doing things, like cutting government, which is something people like in the abstract, redounds to his benefit."
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Don’t miss a single episode of the RealClearPolitics weeknight radio show – subscribe at Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
In the second segment, starting around minute 12, the not-so-subtle political messages in some of Sunday night's Super Bowl ads. Nike, Lays, Jeep, and other advertisers tried to make a splash. Did they make any real points or just catch our attention?
Next, around minute 25, back to Washington, where legal challenges to DOGE have halted many of the administration's recent activities. Trump's argument that waste, fraud, and abuse should be identified and eliminated seems like common sense. Is opposing this a good political move for Democrats?
Also, should the U.S. stop producing pennies?
Finally, starting around minute 36, Tom Bevan talks with RCP senior elections analyst Sean Trende about a new CBS/YouGov poll released this weekend showing President Trump with a 53% approval rating -- his highest ever.
"In our RealClearPolitics Average, we have Trump at 49%, with 46% disapproval. There are a number of polls that show him in the high 40s and around 50, now this CBS poll has him over 50%. When he took office in 2017, I don't think he ever had an approval rating over 50, certainly not in our average. I think he was only above water for like a day or two, and then he was underwater his entire presidency," Tom Bevan commented. "So this looks like a pretty dramatic shift."
"I don't think there is any doubt he's getting a honeymoon this time," added Sean Trende. "Not many people, myself included, expected that."
"We held the idea that he left office very unpopular, after having been unpopular, and everyone already knows him," Trende added. "That's what we told ourselves over and over again during the last election, that Trump was a known quantity. Maybe that was an oversimplification. It seems like a lot of people think he's grown into the job and are giving him a second look."
"He's actually doing stuff. We haven't seen a president actually doing stuff in quite some time," Trende added. "Just the fact that he is energetic and seems to be doing things, like cutting government, which is something people like in the abstract, redounds to his benefit."
***
Don’t miss a single episode of the RealClearPolitics weeknight radio show – subscribe at Apple, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
Source: https://www.realclearpolitics.com/
