A rehashed comparison from a news aggregate site placed President Donald Trump beside President Jimmy Carter in what proved a reminder to many how “DRUDGE sold out years ago.”
Much like Republicans in name only (RINOs), myriad once-reliable media outlets have shifted gears or changed hands over the years, allowing owners to wear the conservative reputation of the past like a skinsuit. Counted among them is the Drudge Report, which leveraged the malaise under Carter to present a dire outlook for the Trump administration as the website’s lead.
Featuring the present and past chief executives side by side, the banner read, “TRUMP APPROVAL: 32% … MATCHING CARTER LOWS .. MORE WAR CONFUSION.”
Oblivious to the radical leftward shift of the aggregate site, a social media user demonstrated how the once go-to for conservatives was being used for spin by commenting, “MAGA Simps will dismiss this headline by calling it ‘left wing propaganda’. I cannot wait to see their faces when they find out this was the morning headline on The Drudge Report.”
MAGA Simps will dismiss this headline by calling it “left wing propaganda”. I cannot wait to see their faces when they find out this was the morning headline on The Drudge Report.#DV1 #USDemocracy #DemsUnited pic.twitter.com/SFcoS6nakc
— Marty Taylor (@RealMartyT7) April 21, 2026
The first link led to an American Research Group poll that found Trump at his lowest approval rating during his entire tenure in the White House.
“A total of 32% of Americans say they approve of the way Donald Trump is handling his job as president, and 63% say they disapprove of the way Trump is handling his job, according to the latest survey from the American Research Group,” read the poll summary. “In March, 34% of Americans approved of the way Trump was handling his job and 63% disapproved.”
American Research Group – Trump Approval
Approve: 32% (-2)
Disapprove: 64% (+1)Trump’s lowest approval in either term
——
Net Approval Trend
Mar 2025: -6
Apr 2026: -32
April 16-20 | 1,008 RV pic.twitter.com/w6NmsEl48R
— InteractivePolls (@IAPolls2022) April 21, 2026
As for the second link, it connected to Statista.com, featuring tracking of Carter’s abysmal approval rating leading up to his 1980 loss to then-former California Gov. Ronald Reagan.
While corporate media readily dismissed the self-evident similarities between Carter and then-President Joe Biden, including the record-high inflation, wallet-draining gas prices, and the hostage crisis in Gaza that extended beyond his administration, outlets appeared more than willing to paint such a picture featuring Trump.
The Wall Street Journal reported that “Trump screamed at aides for hours” after an F-15E Strike Eagle had been shot down, triggering a 36-hour rescue mission. The Journal’s Josh Dawsey and Annie Linskey went on, “The Europeans aren’t helping, he said repeatedly. Gas prices averaged $4.09. Images of the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis–one of the biggest international policy failures of a presidency in recent times–had been looming large in his mind, people who have spoken to him said.”
It was further relayed that the president was said to have expressed in March, “If you look at what happened with Jimmy Carter … with the helicopters and the hostages, it cost them the election. What a mess.”
The Drudge Report made the same banner comparison in 2020 with the headline “POLL SHOCK: TRUMP APPROVAL 38% … JIMMY CARTER LEVELS” linking to a CNN article that read in part, “Overall 38% approve of the way Trump is handling the presidency, while 57% disapprove. That’s his worst approval rating since January 2019, and roughly on par with approval ratings for Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush at this point in the reelection years. Both went on to lose the presidency after one term.”
Reactions were hardly willing to accept the comparison, as social media users instead slammed the aggregate site.
FYI:
Nobody reads Drudge anymore after it was bought and became liberal democrat scum media
— The Dood (@bobbycotton2024) April 21, 2026
And many of you “useful idiots” will believe it.
— Patrice (@Patricemonziel) April 22, 2026
So everyone knows.
DRUDGE sold out years ago. He actually sold out and sold out.
WENT LEFTIST and still pretends.
— CaptMike (@getcloserhome) April 21, 2026
Yeah, like a decade ago. Drudge report became super, stupidly liberal in the lead up to 2016. It happened slowly at first, then rapidly near the end.
— LuminancePhotos (@LuminancePhotos) April 22, 2026
