Presidential approval ratings are constantly monitored — from the inauguration and transfer of power between administrations to each chief executive’s last day in office — in order to gauge popularity. Job approval ratings are a simple metric on how Americans judge the commander-in-chief at any given time, and approval numbers can widely vary throughout a president’s term. The latest poll on President Joe Biden reveals that only 39% of registered voters approve of the way he’s handling his job as president. Before you think that’s the lowest approval rating ever received by a president, consider the case of the 33rd President of the United States. President Harry S. Truman received the lowest Gallup Poll presidential approval rating of all time, landing at 22% during the Korean War. This was due in large part to Truman deciding to relieve General Douglas MacArthur of his command due to his desire to use nuclear weapons to win the war. In fact, there were calls for Truman’s impeachment because of it. In the end, no nuclear weapons were used, Dwight D. Eisenhower succeeded Truman as president, and on July 27, 1953 an armistice was signed, ending the Korean War.
