America Speaks with Dr. Frank Luntz

As President Trump wraps up his Middle East tour, it’s clear his foreign policy marks a sharp departure from that of former President Joe Biden. He has withdrawn the U.S. from international agreements like the Paris Climate Accord, cut numerous foreign aid programs and pursued closer ties with Russia to end the war in Ukraine. He has also floated the idea of taking over foreign territories, such as Greenland and the Gaza Strip, and imposed severe tariffs on longtime U.S. trading partners, including China. According to an April 2025 Pew Research poll, just a few months into his presidency, Trump received mixed to negative ratings from most Americans. Among Republicans, however, support tends to follow party lines on key issues. In the case of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, 57% of Republicans say Trump is handling it correctly, while only 16% believe he’s being too soft on Russia. Democrats strongly disagree — 72% say Trump is leaning too far toward Moscow. Watch the latest 34-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz talks to Americans about U.S. foreign policy under Trump — specifically, whether China poses a threat, the country’s role in the Russia-Ukraine war and whether Trump’s acceptance of a gift plane from Qatar raises ethical concerns.

Americans have mixed feelings about the country’s future, especially when it comes to politics and the economy. Many expect political divisions to deepen by 2050, and they tend to view the past more favorably than the present. Views on the future vary widely along party lines, with Republicans and Democrats expressing different levels of optimism about what lies ahead. Watch this 39-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz leads a discussion with everyday Americans about the country’s future and whether the next generation will be better or worse off.

America is split right down the middle, with its citizens continuing to clash over big issues like immigrationand the economy. Social media keeps people locked in their own bubbles, ramping up the tension, while trust in the government is at an all-time low. Immigration remains the top divisive issue, with President Trump and his supporters’ stance clashing with other Americans, fueling the ongoing national discord. Watch the 41-minute episode of America Speaks, where pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz moderates a heated debate among Americans, largely focused around immigration. In his 35 years of leading focus groups, Dr. Luntz has never seen such anger among participants, strangers before this discussion.  This is the full, unedited version of their conversation.

The U.S. is going through a turbulent period early in President Trump’s second term, with a shaky stock market, new tariffspushing up prices, federal job cuts and tough immigrationcrackdowns. These developments have fueled discussions about whether Trump’s 2024 voters remain supportive or are reconsidering their choice amid the instability. According to an April 2025 Reuters/Ipsos poll, Trump’s approval rating dropped to its lowest point since his return to the White House, with 42% of respondents approving of Trump’s performance, a slight decline from 43% in a the same poll three weeks prior, and a more significant drop from 47% in the hours following his Jan. 20 inauguration. However, Trump’s most loyal followers are very much sticking with him. Watch the above 32-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz talks to pleased Trump voters about the American Dream, tariffs, the economy, national divides and personal sacrifices.

President Donald Trump sparked nationwide controversy with a barrage of executive orders as soon as he returned to the White House to commence his second term on Jan. 20, 2025. Since then, Republicans in Congress have been largely supportive of Trump’s initiatives. However, a series of escalating crises has begun to fracture Republican support of the president both within Congress and among the wider U.S. public. Watch the above 27-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Trump voters to share their opinions of the president’s performance in his first 90 days back in the Oval Office for his second term.

In a typical year, the United States spends between 0.4% to 1.4% of its federal budget on international aid. In 2023, the most recent year for which data is largely complete, that worked out to be around $79 billion, or 1.2%. Much of that aid includes life-saving food and medical supplies, but it also funds clinics, provides for emergency services and helps reduce armed conflicts. Recently, the Trump administration dramatically reduced funding for the chief agencies charged with distributing U.S. foreign aid, and is now formally dismantling the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The administration also cut U.S. funding to the World Food Programme (WFP) in what the United Nations agency called “a death sentence” for millions of humans around the world. The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) maintains that these cancellations are justified for “the convenience of the U.S. Government.” Watch the above 28-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Americans to share their opinions, questions and concerns regarding recent cuts to U.S. foreign aid, how those cuts might impact the projection of American soft power, and what they think the correct path forward should be from here.

After losing the White House and control of the Senate in the 2024 election — while facing record-low approval ratings — the Democratic Party is now debating its future leadership and strategy for handling President Donald Trump’s second term. While Sen. Cory Booker, D-NJ., recently gained attention with a record-breaking speech, other “rising stars” are vying to lead the Democratic Party. Watch the 22-minute America Speaks video above, where pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz talks with Democrats about the future of the party and the viability of politicians such as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY., and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

Last November, Democrats lost the popular vote for the U.S. presidency for the first time in 20 years against a divisive Republican candidate who had nearly been barred from politics for life over his alleged role in the Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection. That defeat shocked the Democratic Party and its supporters, and some analysts say that Democrats today remain in a state of traumatized paralysis even as President Trump rapidly pursues a highly controversial partisan agenda. American liberals split even further in recent weeks, after some Senate Democrats backed a heavily Republican budget in order to avert a government shutdown, a move criticized by the more progressive wing of the party. The center-left defends that decision, however, arguing that a shutdown would have made the current American crisis even worse. Watch the above 33-minute video of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks American Democrats to share what they think is wrong with their party, how they can correct course for the future, and how to resist what they say is the dictatorship of Donald Trump.

Tariffs have emerged as a key component of President Trump’s economic plan for the United States, with sweeping levies imposed upon Mexican, Canadian and Chinese goods shortly after the president began his second term, and with future tariffs expected on European goods. The returning president has long campaigned on tariffs, and sought to implement them to a lesser extent during his first term, as well. But with American companies and workers at risk, the American stock market tumbling and traditional U.S. allies around the world reacting sharply, some Americans have criticized the president’s tariff policies. Watch the above 25-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Americans to share their opinions on Trump’s tariff policies, and whether they think those policies as a whole are good or bad for the future of the United States.

For years, the American public policy debate around billionaires has revolved around questions of wealth inequality, with hardline critics arguing that billionaires should be taxed out of existence to raise living standards for all Americans and center-left leaders like former President Biden instead proposing a milder 25% “billionaire tax.” But that debate is even further divided between party lines.  Republicans have argued for lower taxes on the very wealthy and express less concern over economic inequality than Democrats do, while Democrats have argued for additional tax brackets for the wealthiest Americans and have consistently ranked economic inequality as one of their top concerns. Recently, that debate has overlapped with concerns about the actions of one man, Elon Musk. Musk has played a definitive but controversial role in President Trump’s new administration after spending at least $277 million to help him defeat Kamala Harris in the U.S. 2024 presidential race, inadvertently recentering the debate on economic inequality and the role of money in U.S. politics around himself. Musk’s support of other far-right parties in nations like Germany has also prompted foreign parliaments and heads of state to take action to secure their own political systems against the kind of influence that Musk now exerts in the United States. Watch the above 22-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks a group of Americans to share their perceptions of U.S. billionaires, Elon Musk, tax policy, and the role of billionaires in U.S. politics and economics.

On March 4, 2025, President Donald Trump delivered a 100-minute address to Congress, drawing sharply divided reactions from Democrats and Republicans. He tackled a range of contentious issues, including immigration, economic policy and national defense. Watch the above 37-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks a unique group of American voters — those who supported and opposed the president across two elections — to share their reactions to his address.

There’s been an increase in new independent media voices over the past few decades, amplified especially in recent years by the rise of the internet and online media. Those trends, together with increasing financial difficulties for legacy newsrooms, have contributed to the relative decline of many mainstream news outlets and to the collapse of local investigative journalism. Added to these difficulties are wide-ranging accusations of bias, accessibility and sensationalism that news media professionals have sometimes struggled to address. More and more Americans are now gaining their news from social media or from “news influencers,” but this is not only an American trend. A United Nations study published late last year warned that roughly two-thirds of “digital content creators” around the world do not verify their information before publishing it. Watch the above 22-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Americans to share their opinions on the news media industry and where they think they should go to for their news.

Cracking down on immigration was one of Donald Trump’s top 2024 presidential campaign promises, and he has sought to ramp up U.S. deportations and border security efforts since his return to the White House last month. Some proponents of stricter immigration systems have applauded those efforts, while critics protest that they are cruel, inhumane, unnecessary and ultimately bad for the U.S. economy. Watch this 29-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks a focus group of Americans to share their opinions on immigration issues and how they think President Trump has been doing on immigration in his first month back at the Oval Office.

Donald Trump’s surprise win in the national popular vote count in the 2024 U.S. presidential race shocked even veteran political commentators. Part of that victory certainly owed itself to poor Democratic turnout — a turnout which resembled lower 2016 numbers instead of higher 2020 numbers and which traumatized the Democratic Party establishment with its first popular vote loss in two decades. A portion of that surprise victory, however, also came from individuals who voted for Joe Biden in 2020, but then voted instead for Trump in 2024. Watch the above 33-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz zooms in on a group of Americans who voted for Biden in 2020 but for Trump in 2024. Dr. Luntz asks them to share their personal reasons for why they moved over to Trump, what the Democrats could do to win them back, and how they think the returning president has been doing mere weeks into his second term.

Many of the future officers of the United States Armed Forces begin their journeys as cadets at West Point, America’s oldest military academy and one of the top military academies in the world today. The United States military is often commended for its skill in complex organization and team-building, and students and faculty say that this culture starts early at West Point. Watch the above 25-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks a focus group of West Point students to describe their journeys as cadets to the American public and to share the lessons they’ve learned.

Controversy has surrounded Donald Trump’s questionable selections for top cabinet positions in his upcoming second term, and around his close partnership with Elon Musk, a multibillionaire who spent at least $277 million to help Trump win reelection. Recent arguments between Musk and MAGA-affiliated U.S. Congress members, however, have revealed deep schisms within the Republican Party in the run-up to Trump’s inauguration. Watch the above 39-minute episode of American Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Americans to share their opinions of Trump, Musk, Trump’s cabinet selections and Trump’s relationship with Congress.

Only about 1 in 5 Americans say they support or have an optimistic view of Congress, while 3 out of 5 say they disapprove or have a pessimistic view. While these numbers change a little over time, there are consistently more Americans who disapprove than approve. Watch the above 28-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Americans to share their criticisms of Congress, why they say it’s failing to deliver, and what they’d like to see change in the years ahead.

It can be difficult to predict the relative living standards of future generations in the modern world, where it seems like so much is changing so fast. Emerging technologies like AI, for instance, might empower and accelerate human productivity, but at the same time could also exacerbate wealth, income and power inequalities. And while many of today’s opportunities might not exist for the next generation, it’s also probable that new opportunities will emerge which we cannot yet imagine. Watch the above 21-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz dives into the debate about changing U.S. standards of living over time, how those changes relate to evolving technologies, and what advic

Over the past few decades, rising costs of living and housing in the United States have outpaced real wage gains, which have remained more or less stagnant despite consistent growth in worker productivity over time. All of this — together with rising inequality, the shrinking of the middle class, and the inability of unemployed or unhoused Americans to access the welfare that they need — has contributed to a growing sense of financial hardship for many Americans. Watch the above 30-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks a panel of Black Americans to share their thoughts and feelings about whether or not the American dream can still survive in this economy. Dr. Luntz and the panel are later joined by John Hope Bryant, founder and CEO of Operation HOPE, who shares tools and guidance for achieving greater success in the American financial system.

American shoppers say they will spend a record high amount this year on holiday gifts and expenses, up 8% from the same time last year. While the holidays are meant to be a time of celebration, those with tight budgets can experience acute anxiety from the costs associated with travel, gifts, and taking time off work to be with friends and family. Watch the above 25-minute episode of America Speaks as pollster and political analyst Dr. Frank Luntz asks Americans to share how they’re making ends meet this holiday season, what gifts they’re choosing when everything costs more, and why they believe the economy is worse this year than last.