Donald Trump is pulling down America’s reputation around the world, Pew survey finds
- People in 33 countries were asked about five world leaders, and Trump finished last behind Xi and Putin, who also weren’t popular
- The US as a nation still garnered generally positive views with a 54 per cent favourability rating
The bad news for those concerned with America’s standing in the world is that Donald Trump is president. The good news is that the US still enjoys a generally favourable reputation despite having slipped sharply since Barack Obama left office.
Those were the findings of the Pew Research Centre’s latest survey of 33 nations, an annual litmus test of how the US is viewed beyond its shores.
“The overall confidence in the US president is particularly low across the world in countries we surveyed,” said Jacob Poushter, associate director of global attitudes research at Pew, a non-partisan social research firm. “Generally, support for the US has held up, but not necessarily for its president.”
According to the survey of nearly 37,000 people in almost three dozen countries, Trump had the least favourable reputation of five world leaders that Pew asked about, while German Chancellor Angela Merkel enjoyed the most favourable response.
Generally, support for the US has held up, but not necessarily for its president
And while Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin were not popular among most respondents, both still earned higher marks than Trump. “Many publics express the least confidence in Trump of any world leader asked about,” the survey said.