Donald Trump And Barack Obama Tied For Most Admired Man Of The Year In New Poll
Donald Trump and Barack Obama tied for the most admired man in the country in a new Gallup poll released Monday, Newsweek reports. Both men garnered support from 18 percent of respondents in the survey, with admiration for Trump increasing in 2019 despite Robert Mueller’s report and the businessman’s recent impeachment in the House of Representatives. In 2017, Trump gained the support of 14 percent of respondents, putting him in second place, and in 2018, his support dipped to 13 percent. As for Obama, he has remained in the position of most admired man for 12 years in a row.
In the current survey, most Democrats said they admired Obama the most, while most Republicans said the same for Trump. Notably, Obama’s support was more non-partisan, with 3 percent of Republicans and 12 percent of Independents showing support for the former president. Conversely, just 2 percent of Democrats and 10 percent of Independents said Trump was the man they admired most.
“The incumbent president has typically been Americans’ choice as the most admired man, having earned the distinction in 58 of the 72 prior Gallup polls,” Gallup wrote. “When the incumbent president is not the choice, it is usually because he is unpopular politically, which was the case for Trump in 2017.”
Gallup also noted that Trump’s performance mirrors his rise in overall popularity, citing his increased approval rating in 2019. As for Obama, his steady popularity following his presidency appears to be high for a former leader, as only former President Dwight D. Eisenhower earned double-digit support for most admired man after he left office.
A new poll shows President Trump’s approval rating has ticked up about five points over the last couple of months to 44%. pic.twitter.com/yxJmf9fTvR
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) July 8, 2019
Aside from Trump and Obama, no other man received support from more than 2 percent of survey respondents. The remaining Top 10 include businessman Elon Musk, former President Jimmy Carter, Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders, Pope Francis, California Rep. Adam Schiff, investor Warren Buffet, and the Dalai Lama.
Trump’s presidency has worked to roll back Obama’s legacy, and the real estate mogul has often expressed his discontent with the former president. Per CNN, news of Obama and his wife, Michelle, becoming producing partners for Netflix — as well as Obama’s book deal with Random House — didn’t sit well with Trump.
During an interview with CNN’s Brian Stelter, New York Times chief television critic James Poniewozik appeared to imply Trump’s concern over Obama’s recent deals was due to his close ties to the world of entertainment.
“He in very many ways used television to become president, but then TV kind of became the president, because what he was seeing on TV set his agenda and controlled his mood and determined the world that the rest of us would live in.”
