How (un)popular is Trump in NY ahead of Knicks game visit?

[0:00] the president of the United States, Donald John Trump, may be more hated in his home state of [0:04] New York than the San Antonio Spurs. Because what are we talking about here? Let's take a look here. [0:08] Trump's net approval rating in New York state. You know, you go back to January 2025. It was, [0:13] you know, not so great, but not so terrible. Five points underwater. But look at where he's [0:17] fallen to now. He has now 30 points underwater on the net approval rating in his home state of New [0:23] York. A massive drop off we have seen in his popularity in the Empire State. And it's interesting [0:29] when you dig into some of these numbers, there were some groups, even in this very liberal state, [0:34] that the president was doing well with. Yeah. Okay. You know, a lot of the people who might be [0:37] getting screwed tonight, especially with that watch party getting canceled, are working class New [0:42] Yorkers. And those are the voters who have turned most against the president of the United States. [0:46] Okay. Trump's approval rating in New York state with incomes under 50,000. You know, back in January [0:51] 2025, he was actually slightly above water. One point above water. But hey, one point above water is [0:57] better than one point below water. But look at where he is now. A dramatic decline. My goodness [1:02] gracious. Right down there into the Hudson River. He's now 36 points underwater. Nearly a 40 point [1:08] move against the president of the United States with working class New Yorkers, those with incomes [1:13] under $50,000. And that is matching what we're seeing nationwide as well. And that is the president [1:18] of the United States. Disproportionately, he is losing support among working class Americans. And [1:24] he's disproportionately losing support among working class New Yorkers. This is a pretty [1:28] good number for January 25. Yeah. This isn't. No. It's dropped a lot. One is good. One is really [1:34] bad. Okay. So New York's a big state with a lot of congressional districts, including a few swing [1:39] races here. How are the congressional elections looking in this state? Yeah. Okay. So, you know, [1:43] you go back eight years ago, New York was a very bad place for Republicans in the midterm elections [1:50] during Trump's first midterm election. You'll look at the generic ballot in June of 2018. Democrats [1:55] were ahead of it by 15 points in the Empire State. Look at where it is now. Democrats are even doing [2:00] better than they were doing eight years ago at this point. They were ahead by 19 points right now. [2:05] And this 15 point, this led to a three seat loss for Republicans as Democrats went on to gain the [2:09] majority. Now, there are not as many competitive races this time around, but Mike Lawler up in the [2:13] Hudson Valley has to be looking at a number like this and has to be shivering because it turns out what [2:18] happens at the top of the ballot with Donald John Trump manages oftentimes to find its way to down [2:24] ballot races. And I think Mike Lawler sees this and says, nah, I'm not so hot to trot. And you talk [2:29] about the governor's race as well at the top of the ticket. This is another thing that may drain [2:33] Republicans as well. Chance that Democrats win the 2026 gov race, Kornikashi. It was 74% back at the [2:39] beginning of Trump's second term. Look at where it is now. Kathy Hochul, the Democrat, sky high, 91%. [2:45] These are the types of numbers that really should make Republicans quite worried in Donald John [2:49] Trump's home state, where, as I said at the top, he may be the only thing that's more hated in New [2:53] York than the San Antonio Spurs. With us now, sports commentator, Bomani Jones. He's the host of [2:57] The Right Time with Bomani Jones podcast. Good to see you this morning. How do you think fans feel [3:04] about this having to arrive two hours before the game to get in because the president's going to be [3:10] there? Well, I think that's the part that will probably cause people more problems, regardless of who [3:16] the person is, regardless of what the reason is, right? Like, you're going to need to get there early. [3:20] On the bright side, I think that people who had tickets to this game would want to be there early. This [3:25] is the most anticipated basketball game in this city in literally 56 years. So, I mean, people were going [3:32] to be there probably as early as they could. It's just going to be an increased hassle and inconvenience. [3:37] I was in Connecticut, northern Connecticut yesterday, out on the streets, and people were yelling, [3:41] go Knicks. Like, out of nowhere, like out of context, they were concerned about that. It's a huge, [3:47] huge deal around here. Bomani, I will say, though, that given how important this is to people, [3:53] there are mixed feelings about the president being there and throwing that political element into it. [3:58] I did speak to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries about this. He is a native New Yorker. [4:03] Listen to what he said. I'm not sure it's going to be a good reception for him, but why does Donald Trump [4:08] always have to ruin a good thing? Like, literally, the Knicks haven't been in the NBA finals for 27 [4:14] years. The city is trying to celebrate this. We've embraced this team, and this guy has to inject [4:21] himself. I mean, come on, seriously, give us a break. Why doesn't this guy just focus on trying to [4:27] improve the quality of life of the American people? Because the Trump economy has been a disaster. [4:32] So what about the mixture or the injection, as he says, of politics into sports, Bomani? [4:38] No, this isn't about the injection of politics into sports. This is about the injection of Trump [4:45] into sports. If this were just about any other president, I don't think it would go over the [4:50] way that it would. This is specifically about this man whose relationship with his hometown is fraught, [4:56] I think would be a fair thing to point out. But in this time, in this moment with this guy, [5:03] ain't nobody really trying to hear this. Like, what was the most surprising thing about it to me is [5:07] that Trump normally turns up in, like, college football games, places that for him are home [5:11] games. This is not a home game, no matter where he's from. This is an away game. I am surprised [5:15] that this is something that he wants to do, because he typically thrives on positive affirmation, [5:20] and he ain't going to get none of that on Madison Square Garden, like, not a bit. [5:24] It's an interesting take. This is not a home game for the president, despite being from New York. [5:27] Bomani Jones, great to see you. Thanks for sticking around. [5:29] With the New York Knicks about to host their first NBA Finals game since 1999, the city preparing for [5:37] another historic moment, the first sitting U.S. president to attend an NBA Finals game. [5:44] CNN's Gloria Pazzamino filed this report. [5:49] Well, it's going to look very different outside Madison Square Garden on Monday night, [5:53] and that's because this area is going to be closed off to traffic and to pedestrians. [5:58] So we're not going to see the usual scenes of celebration and fans gathering at the game [6:05] that we have been seeing in the last few games, and that's because the watch party has officially [6:10] been canceled. The reason for that is the presidential visit. Trump is expected to attend [6:15] Monday night's game, and that means there's going to be intensive security protocols going [6:22] into the event. For anyone who is attending this game, they're being asked to arrive at least [6:27] two hours early. They will have to go through double layers of security, essentially airport [6:32] style security. So arrive early, arrive prepared, and just know that this area is going to be [6:38] very hard to access unless you have tickets to attend the game. The fact that the watch party [6:43] is canceled, surely a disappointment for a lot of fans, for a lot of Knicks fans who have [6:48] been relying on the watch party to watch the games and attend the celebrations. Take a listen. [6:54] Personally, I think it's kind of a shame. I really wouldn't like it, you know, because we've been [6:58] waiting for this for like how long. And, you know, a lot of people can't afford to get into [7:03] the game. I'm one of those people. So I was actually looking forward to going to one of [7:06] these watch parties. This is a monumental day in New York City, and you're going to cancel it. [7:11] It's all right. We're going to find a way, okay? If you guys know real New Yorkers, we're going to find [7:15] a way. And, you know, like he could say he's a native New Yorker, but he doesn't live here, [7:19] and he's kind of pooped on us for a while. And, you know, so like, I think this is our time and [7:24] he's distracting from our time. We don't need that negativity. We need nothing but positive vibes. [7:29] That was so on New York to clean that word up and say poop. It was very nice of him to say. [7:34] It was very nice. [7:35] So that we could put it on television. But, you know, there is no area in New York like being [7:41] outside of Madison Square Garden. After a Knicks game, never mind a finals game. As you said, [7:46] the atmosphere in the city for the past few days has been just electric. You know, [7:50] people are so excited. I would even say that everyone is being a little bit nicer. We're all [7:55] a little bit happier. We're being kinder to each other. But there was a lot of folks that I spoke [8:00] to yesterday who were not so thrilled that the president's going to be in town for this one [8:04] because it's going to mean, you know, there's going to be this massive security presence. [8:08] The watch party's been canceled for tonight. So people who cannot get into the garden [8:14] can't go to the watch party. There'll be other watch parties around the city. [8:18] But I do think that, you know, it's it's going to be a very different kind of vibe inside the [8:25] garden. You know, the energy, I think, will be on the game on the Knicks. I think that's what [8:30] true Knicks fans will be focused on. A lot of New Yorkers will be focused on and we'll see what [8:34] reception the president gets in that arena tonight. He is a New Yorker, but he is not a very popular or [8:40] beloved New Yorker. Well, and you can feel it. I mean, [8:42] we're not that far from Madison Square Garden right now. You can already feel [8:46] not just the excitement, but the security intensifying. Understandably, he's the president [8:52] of the United States. He's not the only high profile political figure who's going. [8:57] The mayor of New York City is going. Listen to what Zoran Mamdani said this morning. [9:03] I bought my tickets for nearly a thousand dollars from Madison Square Garden. I'll be going to [9:08] tonight's game three and I'll be standing for the duration of the game. [9:11] Standing room only, a thousand dollars. [9:15] It's incredible. And, you know, I was on Instagram earlier and there were reels that came upon my feed [9:22] that were encouraging people how to boo inside of this. This is his hometown. So I think Madison [9:26] Square is going to be absolutely lit tonight as both a sporting event and a political event. [9:31] Go ahead. I'm just excited to be on TV talking about sports. This is about time. No, I mean, [9:37] I have two kids and my older son was sorting through his M&Ms this weekend and pulling out [9:42] the blue and the oranges. Like, these are Knicks colors and we're making Sundays. So even if he's [9:47] not a Knicks fan growing up, he's becoming one all of a sudden. [9:50] And just going back to Donald Trump, we mentioned that he is a Knicks fan and has been. And we went [9:58] into the vault and found some photos of the president here back. Wait, is that Elliot Gould? [10:05] With Marla Maples. There you see he's with Melania, Howard Stern, Bill O'Reilly. I also want to go even [10:14] further. If we go back to 1999. Yep, that's President Trump or then just Donald Trump with JFK Jr. [10:25] I mean, look, this is going to be an iconic night. That was an iconic night. The last time that the [10:34] Knicks were in the finals, 1999. The Knicks draw some of the biggest celebrities in New York. [10:41] You know, Spike Lee has been going to these games for longer than I've been alive, waiting for the [10:47] big one. He might finally get it. This is as New York as it gets. And I think, you know, to your point [10:53] about sports and politics, I think, you know, in this time that we're living in, we see that often [10:59] sports can become extremely political. And I think we might see some of that on display tonight because [11:06] it is the garden, because it is New York. And people's emotions are running high about the [11:11] president's visit, about the game and about where we are right now.