CBS News poll finds most would oppose U.S. military action in Venezuela, say Trump hasn’t explained

The situation around Venezuela has Americans wanting to know more.

Across party lines, large majorities say the administration must explain U.S. intentions regarding any action, and that it has not yet done so clearly.

Meanwhile, what Americans are hearing from the White House about inflation This is not, they say, what they really feel at home: rising price And deterioration economic visions.

In the meantime, Americans are not thinking about Venezuela as a major threat to the United States. Instead, more see a minor problem and they are largely opposed to potential military action.

Thus, the idea of ​​possible American military action in Venezuela meets with widespread disapproval. Nor does he enjoy overwhelming support from Republicans.

Three in four Americans also believe that Trump would need congressional approval before undertaking military action in Venezuela, including a little more than half of the Republicans.

Only one in five Americans have ever heard much about building up the U.S. military. Perhaps this is another expression of this feeling of limited information about the goal.

The current army attacks on boats suspected of causing the drug divide – just over half approve, thanks to almost universal Republican support – although Americans as a whole overwhelmingly say they should see proof of the drugs’ existence.

However, most Americans do not believe that U.S. military action in Venezuela would change the amount of drugs entering the United States.

Taking a closer look at the president’s Republican base: MAGA Republicans are actually more more favorable to potential military action than non-MAGA ones.

For context, this is similar to what we have seen over time on many issues, including foreign policy, in which this part of the base largely shows deference to the president. (As an example, MAGA also supported the bombing in Iran a few months ago.) Most of them say the president has have explained things and, in turn, are more inclined to view any action in Venezuela as decreasing the amount of drugs entering the United States.

But many of those who oppose military action, including those within the ranks of the Republican Party, may also see this in terms of priorities. They are somewhat more likely to judge the administration by what it does about economy than those in favor. And most of those who judge him on economics think he doesn’t spend enough time on it.

Here’s what Americans are saying about the economy

There is a disconnect between how Americans hear the White House describe the economy and how they themselves feel.

Most Americans say Trump describe things with prices and inflation better than they really are.

(This includes four in ten Republicans who say this about Trump. They are also among those most likely to say prices are rising.)

This comes as ratings for the overall economy remain weak – as they have been for years – falling this week to their lowest level in 2025.

Prices, more generally, are still perceived by most as an increase.

As we approach the holiday season, this economic discontent concerns the majority of Americans who believe President Trump’s policies are driving up the cost of food and groceries, in particular.

This disconnect therefore seems to continue to weigh on the president’s ratings.

Americans judge a president in many ways. Those who say they judge Mr. Trump primarily on what he does on the economy and inflation overwhelmingly say he doesn’t spend enough time on them.

This, in turn, continued to push his approval on the management of the economy and downward inflation for several months. This trend continues this week, with assessments of the overall economy and its ratings on the management of the economy and inflation reaching their lowest level for the year.

More than two thirds disapprove of his management of inflation.

It is particularly bad at managing the economy among people who are primarily judge him about it.

Among independents, his ratings on handling the economy, and his ratings in general, also hit their lowest level for the year. This also continued to cause his overall approval rating to decline over time, now down to its lowest point for his second term after a steady decline over the past few months.

The president is doing a little better in his management of immigration, supported by continued broad support from the Republican base, as has been the case for months.

The decline in the president’s overall approval rating is thus linked to citizens’ economic priorities: even among those who voted for him in 2024, disapproval is more likely today when people judge him primarily on the basis of the economy.

Deportation

The government’s deportation agenda continues to divide the country, but its support is buoyed by strong Republican approval.

Most – especially those outside the Republican base – still think ICE is detention more people than necessary.

But many see the deportation program as weakening the economy rather than strengthening it.

One possible reason: A third of the country’s residents (who tend to live in cities and suburbs) say it’s having a worse impact on their community, and they feel people in their area are staying home more because of the program.

Epstein Files

Americans of all parties believe it is important to see the Epstein files released.

The vast majority of Americans believe they will contain damaging information about powerful people. Most say it’s too early to know if what they contain is true. Overall, however, more people think the information will be true than false.

Republicans are happier with the Trump administration’s handling of the Epstein case than they were this summer. (The investigation was conducted just after Trump said Congress should vote to release the files, which he did shortly thereafter.) Today, most others aren’t happy.

However, the president’s Republican base says the issues surrounding those cases don’t matter in how they judge him. Nearly two-thirds of Republicans say it doesn’t affect how they rate Trump overall. (Independents and Democrats, however, give it comparatively more importance in this regard.)

This CBS News/YouGov survey was conducted among a nationally representative sample of 2,489 U.S. adults surveyed between November 19 and 21, 2025. The sample was weighted to be nationally representative of adults based on gender, age, race and education, based on the U.S. Census’ American Community Survey and Current Population Survey, as well as the presidential vote of 2024. The margin of error is ±2.4 points.