US Losing 'Positive Ratings'... National Pride Hits Lowest, Criticism Arises Saying "Worse COVID Response Than China"

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Positive evaluations of the United States have significantly declined both domestically and internationally due to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and incidents of racial discrimination. Americans' pride in their country has reached an all-time low, and externally, criticism continues that the U.S. response to COVID-19 was inadequate compared to China.

According to a Gallup poll conducted from May 28 to June 4 among 1,034 U.S. adults aged 18 and older, 63% of respondents said they were "extremely" or "very" proud to be American. Forty-two percent answered "extremely proud," and 21% answered "very proud." Other responses were "moderately" (15%), "a little" (12%), and "not at all" (9%).

The percentage of respondents who said they were "extremely" or "very" proud dropped sharply by 7 percentage points from last year's survey (70%), marking the lowest level since Gallup began polling in 2001. This percentage peaked at 92% in 2003 but remained in the 80% range until 2016 and then declined to the 70% range from 2017 to 2019. Gallup explained that this response rate has been steadily decreasing over the past six years.

This survey was conducted amid the spread of COVID-19, with the U.S. facing health and economic difficulties, and following the wave of protests against racial discrimination after the death of Black man George Floyd, which is interpreted as a reason for the decline in positive evaluations of the U.S. In an earlier Gallup survey, only 20% of Americans said they were satisfied with the direction of the country, and support for President Donald Trump's job performance was only 39%.

This trend was also observed among groups that typically have higher pride in being American, such as White Americans, older adults, and Republican supporters. The percentage of White respondents who said they were "extremely proud" dropped below 50% for the first time, recording 49%. Among Republican supporters, the response rate was 67%, down 9 percentage points from the previous year. The response rate among Democratic supporters, which had sharply declined since Trump's election in 2017, slightly recovered to 24% from 22% last year.

Internationally, the image of the U.S. is also deteriorating. In particular, criticism that the U.S. was less effective than China in responding to COVID-19 has continued. According to a survey conducted by German polling agency Dalia Research from April 20 to June 3 among 124,000 people in 53 countries, only 34% said the U.S. handled COVID-19 well, which is about half of China's 62%. Among the 53 countries surveyed, only four? the U.S., Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan?rated the U.S. COVID-19 response more positively than China’s.

With COVID-19 cases surpassing 2 million and concerns about a second wave growing, President Trump’s insistence on reopening the economy rather than following health authorities' advice appears to have increased negative views worldwide. The Guardian analyzed, "This survey reveals deep dissatisfaction worldwide with U.S. leadership under President Trump."

Additionally, Americans expressed higher dissatisfaction with the Trump administration’s response compared to other countries. When asked if their government responded well to COVID-19, only 53% of Americans answered "very much so" or "somewhat so," nearly 20 percentage points below the global average of 70%. In South Korea, 86% gave the same response, ranking fourth jointly with Australia and Denmark, following Greece (89%), Taiwan (87%), and Ireland (87%).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.