PATRIOTISM PLUMMETS

CNN Data Guru Says National Pride Has ‘Fallen Through Floor’

Among Americans under 35, the decline has been especially steep.

National pride in the United States has plunged to record lows, according to new polling data.

CNN data guru Harry Enten said that the slide is being especially felt by young Americans and Democrats.

“There has been a major shift over the last decade among young adults in terms of how they feel, their pride in being an American, because what are we talking about here?” Enten said.

Among Americans under 35, the decline has been especially steep. Gallup polling shows that in 2015, 71 percent of young adults said they were extremely or very proud to be American. By 2025, that number had fallen to just 36 percent.

“There has just been a major shift, a historic shift in the pride that young Americans feel for their country,” Enten said.

The decline is even sharper among Democrats. According to PRRI data, 83 percent of Democrats expressed high national pride in 2013. By 2025, that figure had dropped to 31 percent, a record low.

“When you combine both youth and being a Democrat, that number falls into the 20s, young Democrats, Generation Z Democrats,” Enten said. “Less than 30 percent of them are either extremely or very proud to be an American.”

Republicans, however, show far less change. Their pride levels dipped from 92 percent in 2013 to 80 percent in 2025, and in Gallup polling over a similar period, Enten noted, “There was no change.”

“What we’re seeing is younger people and Democrats really shifting away, shifting downward in their proudness to be an American,” Enten added.

“Republicans have stayed pretty steady despite the partisanship of the president changing. But Democrats are very much shifting away, with Donald Trump having really changed the equation for young Americans and Democratic Americans or those who identify as Democrats, while he hasn’t changed the equation when it comes to Republicans, whose pride levels have actually remained fairly steady over the same period.”

It comes as Trump is embroiled in a row with 27-year-old American freestyle skier Hunter Hess, who said he has “mixed emotions” about representing the United States at the Winter Olympics, adding to a growing number of Team USA athletes who have spoken out against the administration’s policies.

“I think it brings up mixed emotions to represent the U.S. right now, I think. It’s a little hard. There’s obviously a lot going on that I’m not the biggest fan of, and I think a lot of people aren’t. I think for me it’s more I’m representing my, like, friends and family back home, the people that represented it before me, all the things that I believe are good about the U.S.,” Hess said.

That prompted Trump to call Hess “a real Loser,” saying it’s “Very hard to root for someone like this. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!”

On Monday, Hess responded to Trump’s comments in an Instagram post. “I love my country,” he said. “There is so much that is great about America, but there are always things that could be better. One of the many things that makes this country so amazing is that we have the right and the freedom to point that out.”

Several athletes have recently spoken out about Trump and the political climate, using their public platforms to address issues they say affect their lives and communities.

Freestyle skier Chris Lillis said he remains proud of the United States but feels “heartbroken” by recent events, emphasizing the importance of respecting everyone’s rights. First-time Olympian Amber Glenn likewise argued that athletes should not stay silent, pointing to the real-world impact of politics, including on the LGBTQ community.

Others have been more confrontational. Olympic skier Gus Kenworthy drew attention with a provocative Instagram post reading “F--- ICE,” which he later confirmed was written in urine.

Kenworthy said the message was meant to protest what he described as unchecked power exercised by immigration authorities, writing that people “can’t wait around” while ICE continues to operate in communities after the deaths of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis .

He later said the post triggered a wave of death threats.

Meanwhile, recent polls have shown Trump losing ground with key voters in light of the current political climate. Recent analysis by Harry Enten showed Trump’s approval declining with non-college educated voters.

Other polling has found the president losing support among young, non-white, and low-propensity voters—groups that moved sharply in his favor in 2024.

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