<p>President Trump&rsquo;s approval rating jumped to 49% following his first State of the Union address last Tuesday &ndash; the closest he has been to 50% since June 2016.</p>
<p>&ldquo;Rasmussen just announced my approval rating jumped to 49%, a far better number than I had in winning the Election, and higher than certain &ldquo;sacred cows,&rdquo; tweeted Trump on Saturday. &ldquo;Other Trump polls are way up also. So why does the media refuse to write this? Oh well, someday!&rdquo; ;</p>
<p>Trump has also compared his approval rating to that of his predecessor, which was right at 50% at the same point during his presidency. ;</p>
<p>Rasmussen polls* conducted Thursday and Friday of last week show an increase in the number of Americans who approve of Trump jump from 45% to 49%. The number of Americans who disapprove dropped from 53% to 49%.</p>
<p>As the liberal media has been quick to point out, Rasmussen regularly scores Trump higher than other polls.</p>
<p>According to the most recent data on <em>Real Clear Politics</em>, Trump&#8217;s job approval rating is somewhere between ;41% and 49%. A Gallup poll released in late January puts Trump&rsquo;s approval rating as low as 38%.</p>
<p>Trump&rsquo;s approval rating during his first year in office fluctuated between 35% and 45%.</p>
<p>The overall mood among Americans is also improving. According to a recent Gallup poll, 78% of Americans are pleased with our current military strength (a 12 point increase compared to last year) and 63% are confident the US is safe from terrorists (up 13 points from last year). Consumer confidence is at a 17-year high. ;</p>
<p>*Rasmussen&rsquo;s daily tracking polls involve 500 &ldquo;likely US voters&rdquo; and are conducted via telephone. ;</p>
<p><strong>Editor&#8217;s note:</strong> If Trump&#8217;s approval rating continues to rise, it means Trump can campaign heavily for Congressional campaigns around the country in mid-terms.</p>