Analysis: Coronavirus erodes Trump's re-election prospects

Only a month ago, United States President Donald Trump was on top of the world.

Democratic efforts to impeach him in the US Congress had failed and backfired. Public support for the president had actually increased among some independent voters, and support from his Republican base remained steady. Stock markets were at an all-time high, and unemployment hovered at all-time lows. While perhaps not the “roaring geyser of opportunity” that Trump said it was, the economy was humming along nicely, and the president was not shy about taking credit.

Six weeks ago, the US election was Trump’s to lose. A key pillar of Trumpism – that the real estate magnate and businessman was the best steward of the US economy – seemed plausible. Then everything changed.

Almost overnight, the US has been plunged into an unprecedented economic crisis. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin is warning of the possibility of 20 percent unemployment. Businesses are clamouring for bailouts, and factories are closing temporarily and laying off workers. The 11-year bull run in the stock markets has come to a screeching halt, and more and more forecasters see a recession on the doorstep.

What Trump incorrectly called “the greatest economy in this history of our country” is in tatters, along with – perhaps – his odds of being re-elected in November.