Trump Approval Ratings: Impeachment Hearings Helping Or Hurting President As 2020 Election Looms

There has been considerable talk about President Trump's approval ratings with the 2020 election less than a year away and amid a House impeachment inquiry.

A poll released Wednesday by Reuters/Ipsos showed that 45% of Americans believe that Trump should be impeached. The survey also showed that 42% do not support impeachment.

Among Democratic voters, 79% believe Trump should be impeached, while only 10% of Republican voters agree with impeachment. Only 30% of Americans believe that the country is headed in the right direction.

The latest polling from Rasmussen Reports, a conservative-leaning poll, shows that 50% of Americans approve of Trump's job performance, while Reuters/Ipsos shows a 40% approval rating of the president and 58% disapproval rating.

It remains unclear how Trump's approval ratings will be impacted as the inquiry continues. Prior to the hearings, there had been questions as to whether Trump's base and independents would rally around the president, as was the case with former President Bill Clinton's approval ratings amid the 1998 impeachment.

Key moments during this week's hearings include acting Ambassador to Ukraine William Taylor saying that Ambassador to the EU Gordon Sondland had a call with President Trump on July 26 on Ukraine. During the call, Sondland had reportedly told Trump that Ukraine was "ready to move forward" with investigations into Hunter Biden's activities in Ukraine.

Another key moment was during former Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch's testimony, with Trump tweeting criticisms of her as she spoke to Congress. Yovanovitch called the tweets "very intimidating." The tweets could be used as evidence of witness tampering.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced the beginning of the House impeachment inquiry on Sept. 24, following a whistleblower's account that Trump leveraged aid for Ukraine to get investigations of Hunter Biden's activities in the country. Hunter Biden is the son of top Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, and the move could be viewed as using an international ally to get dirt on a political opponent.