Trump says US ‘not putting troops anywhere’ in Iran
President Trump denied the U.S. is sending troops to Iran, despite a U.S. Navy warship carrying 2,000 Marines being spotted moving into the region.
President Trump will visit Memphis to discuss the Memphis Safe Task Force amid low national approval ratings.Recent polls show Trump’s national approval rating is around 40-42%, with disapproval near 55-58%.In Tennessee, Trump’s approval rating is higher, with 57% of residents approving of his job performance.
President Donald Trump will visit the Bluff City to discuss the work of the Memphis Safe Task Force, but his approval ratings are at their lowest point this year.
The war with Iran has sparked controversy among Americans, with polls indicating that about half of voters disapprove of Trump’s approach to military action there.
On March 23, Trump will make his way to Memphis to give a speech that will highlight “the incredible achievements of the Memphis Safe Task Force,” according to White House spokesperson Liz Huston.
This visit to Memphis comes almost six months after the task force began its work in the city.
Here is what Tennessee and the country think of the president’s recent work.
What is Donald Trump’s approval rating?
Averages calculated by the RealClearPolitics aggregators show Trump’s approval rating has been net negative since the spring of his first year back in office. From April to November, it stayed relatively stable until dropping suddenly, and has been fluctuating since.
RealClearPolitics graphics show 42.3% approve of Trump’s job performance and 55.2% disapprove as of March 18. The lowest term approval came on Feb. 17 at 42%. It was also his worst net approval rating at -13.5 percentage points, which he also reached the following week.
The Economist
Most recent Trump approval rating, according to the latest from The Economist (March. 14, 2026):
Favorable: 37%Unfavorable: 56%Not sure: 7%
New York Times
Most recent Trump approval rating, according to the latest New York Times poll (March 20, 2026):
Unfavorable: 55%Favorable: 41%Rasmussen
Most recent Trump approval rating, according to the latest Rasmussen poll (March 20, 2026):
Favorable: 45%Unfavorable: 54%Silver Bulletin
Most recent Trump approval rating according to Pollster Nate Silver’s “Silver Bulletin” newsletter (March 20, 2026):
Favorable: 40.7%Unfavorable: 55.4%Reuters/Ipsos
Most recent Trump approval rating, according to the latest from Reuters/Ipsos poll (March 19, 2026):
Favorable: 40%Unfavorable: 58%Civiqs
Most recent Trump approval rating according to Civiqs poll (March 19, 2026):
Favorable: 39%Unfavorable: 57%Not sure: 4%Fox News
Most recent Trump approval rating, according to the latest Fox News poll (March 3, 2026):
Favorable: 43%Unfavorable: 57%What is Trump’s approval rating in Tennessee?
Civiqs polls, last updated March 19, show Trump’s net approval in Tennessee is 11%. The net approval rating is the difference between approval and disapproval ratings. Right now, 57% of Tennessee residents approve of his performance, 39% disapprove, and 4% are neutral.
Trump’s net approval in Tennessee began at 26% when he took office and declined to 11% by late 2025, where it has remained. During his first term, he started with a 17% net rating and ended with an 11% rating.
These polling numbers were also broken down by age, education, gender, race and party.
Age: Adults ages 18–34 expressed the highest level of unfavorable views of Trump (55%), while those 65 and older were the most favorable (65%).Education: Approval of Trump’s job performance is seen among 51% of college graduates and 55% of non-college graduates, while 53% of postgraduates disapprove.Gender: Men and women are split slightly on Trump, with 49% of women disapproving and 62% of men having a positive outlook on the president.Party: Among political parties, Democrats and independents both disapprove of the president, at rates of 97% and 51%, respectively. Unsurprisingly, 90% of Republicans in the state approve of Trump’s performance.Race: Results by race show that voters of color have a predominantly negative view of Trump. Among Black voters, 89% disapprove along with 51% of Hispanic/Latino voters. In contrast, Trump has a 62% approval rating among white voters and 51% among those identified as “Other.”
Jordan Green covers trending news for The Commercial Appeal and Tennessee. She can be reached at jordan.green@commercialappeal.com.