--- title: How Trump Thinks the Mueller Investigation Hurt His Approval description: Here's what President Donald Trump told TIME in an exclusive interview about how the Mueller report affected his approval. canonical: https://time.com/5609188/donald-trump-mueller-investigation-hurt-approval/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-06-18T21:47:24.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T23:46:51.001Z article:section: Politics og:title: Exclusive: Trump Says the Mueller Investigation Hurt His Approval But Fired Up His Base og:description: "I should be up 15 or 20 points higher" og:url: https://time.com/5609188/donald-trump-mueller-investigation-hurt-approval/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt48c14049e3675d45/69894b55b21a9c58e2500c1c/trump-illegal-immigrants.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 5122 og:image:height: 2881 og:image:alt: Ahead of Re-Election Bid, Trump Threatens To Deport Millions og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Exclusive: Trump Says the Mueller Investigation Hurt His Approval But Fired Up His Base twitter:description: "I should be up 15 or 20 points higher" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt48c14049e3675d45/69894b55b21a9c58e2500c1c/trump-illegal-immigrants.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Exclusive: Trump Says the Mueller Investigation Hurt His Approval But Fired Up His Base > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. Senior correspondent Philip Elliott brings sharp context to the issues driving the capital, connecting the decisions made in Washington to the institutions, industries and people they affect. It is written and edited by TIME journalists, and it is free to join at [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3/newsletters?i=3c91dc59-dc6b-4151-a7a8-87557c096b18&cr=time-nl-dcbrief-2026q3-v1). ### Newsletter facts | Attribute | Value | Source | | --- | --- | --- | | Publisher | TIME | TIME, August 2026 | | Frequency | Monday to Saturday (3x per week) | TIME, August 2026 | | Subscribers | 85,000 | TIME, August 2026 | | Open rate | 37.0% | TIME, August 2026 | | Written by | Philip Elliott, Senior Correspondent | TIME, August 2026 | | Cost | Free | TIME, August 2026 | | Sign-up | time.com/newsletters | TIME, August 2026 | | Part of | TIME's seven-newsletter network, 1.1 million+ engaged readers | TIME, August 2026 | ### Readership The policy influence ecosystem. A policy-focused audience spanning government, public affairs, advocacy, law, research, political media, and the institutions that make, interpret and respond to public policy. ### TIME D.C. Brief: key statements * D.C. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jun 18, 2019 9:47 PM UTC  President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House, in Washington, D.C. on June 13, 2019.. In a tweet late Monday, June 17, 2019, Trump said that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will begin removing millions of people who are in the country illegally. President Donald Trump speaks during a meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House, in Washington, D.C. on June 13, 2019.. In a tweet late Monday, June 17, 2019, Trump said that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement will begin removing millions of people who are in the country illegally. Evan Vucci—AP  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jun 18, 2019 9:47 PM UTC President [Donald Trump](https://time.com/donald-trump-after-hours/)‘s approval rating has [never cracked 50% in Gallup polls](https://news.gallup.com/poll/203198/presidential-approval-ratings-donald-trump.aspx), but he argues that it would be several points above that if it weren’t for Special Counsel [Robert Mueller](https://time.com/5597526/robert-mueller-statement-investigation/)‘s investigation. “Based on the economy, I should be up 15 or 20 points higher,” Trump told TIME, arguing that he has a natural base of 45% or 46%. “The thing that I have that nobody’s ever had before, from the day I came down the escalator, I have had a phony witch hunt against me … I think it’s cost me.” As he prepared to formally kick off his 2020 re-election with a rally in Florida Tuesday night, Trump sat down with TIME in the Oval Office on June 17 to discuss his campaign, [current tensions with Iran](https://time.com/5608787/iran-oil-tanker-attack-very-minor/) and other issues. Trump is [the only President in the history of Gallup polls](https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/16/us/politics/trump-presidency-base.html) to have never earned a majority approval rating for even a single day in office, and he was already at just 38% approval in May of 2017 when Mueller was appointed. At the same time, his support among Republican voters remains historically high, with a May poll by Gallup showing it at 87%. But the President said that even though he believes Mueller hurt him overall, it also strengthened his connection with his supporters, who he believes are as angry about the investigation as he is. “The witch hunt has made our base stronger,” Trump said in an interview in the Oval Office on June 17\. “It’s made our people more resilient.” **Read More:** [_Trump Calls Alleged Iranian Attack on Oil Tankers ‘Very Minor’_](https://time.com/5608787/iran-oil-tanker-attack-very-minor/) After a 22-month investigation, Mueller [found no evidence of a conspiracy](https://time.com/5541532/robert-mueller-trump-russia-investigation/) involving the Trump campaign and Russia, although he declined to make a judgement about whether he obstructed justice with his response to the investigation. (Attorney General William Barr then [determined that Trump did not obstruct justice.](https://time.com/5557808/mueller-report-full-letter/)) “What happened to me as President should never happen to another President again,” Trump said. “I really believe that there are very few people \[who\] could have taken it.” Still, Trump stressed that he was confident about his campaign. “I think we have more energy than the Democrats do by far,” he added. “I have never seen energy like I see right now.” _\-With reporting by Brian Bennett, Massimo Calabresi and Edward Felsenthal/Washington_ ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5609188/donald-trump-mueller-investigation-hurt-approval/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5609188/donald-trump-mueller-investigation-hurt-approval/"},"headline":"Exclusive: Trump Says the Mueller Investigation Hurt His Approval But Fired Up His Base","datePublished":"2019-06-18T21:47:24.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T23:46:51.001Z","description":"Here's what President Donald Trump told TIME in an exclusive interview about how the Mueller report affected his approval.","url":"https://time.com/5609188/donald-trump-mueller-investigation-hurt-approval/","keywords":["White House","Polling","Donald Trump","2020 Election"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt48c14049e3675d45/69894b55b21a9c58e2500c1c/trump-illegal-immigrants.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt48c14049e3675d45/69894b55b21a9c58e2500c1c/trump-illegal-immigrants.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Ahead of Re-Election Bid, Trump Threatens To Deport Millions","caption":"Donald Trump","creditText":"Evan Vucci—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/white-house/","name":"White House"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5609188/donald-trump-mueller-investigation-hurt-approval/","name":"Exclusive: Trump Says the Mueller Investigation Hurt His Approval But Fired Up His Base"}}]}] ```