President Donald Trump is set to address the United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday as public support collapses for his handling of foreign policy.
Only 36 percent of Americans believe the U.S. is winning the war, compared with 64 percent who say it is not, according to a CNN poll conducted last week, and White House reporter Alayna Treene noted that only 29 percent of Americans approve of how Trump is handling foreign affairs broadly, versus 71 percent who disapprove.
"These are just abysmal poll numbers when it comes to foreign policy," Treene said, adding that she expects the numbers to loom over the president's remarks even as he tries to use the speech to reshape his image on the world stage.
"It's a big day for the president," agreed "CNN News Central" anchor John Berman, "but he's facing some serious, serious headwinds in terms of what the American people think."
Treene said she had been told by U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz that a central theme of Trump's address will be insisting that Iran can never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon. She said conversations with White House officials suggest Trump wants to use the speech to present himself as a global peacemaker, an image she said the polling numbers undercut.
Beyond the speech itself, Treene said she was watching closely for what emerges from Trump's later meetings with Gulf Cooperation Council nations, including Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. She said Gulf allies have pressed the administration for help as attacks from Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen add a new complication to the conflict, and that Saudi officials have previously influenced Trump's decisions on whether to escalate or hold back military action.
Treene also flagged the presence of a "slimmed down" Iranian delegation at the General Assembly, raising the possibility of an informal, sideline meeting between American and Iranian officials. She said Waltz told CNN's Kaitlan Collins on Monday night that Trump would be open to such a meeting, though she noted it remains unclear whether Iranian officials would agree to one.
"The president has done that kind of 'Hail Mary' diplomacy before," a co-anchor remarked, referring to Trump's past willingness to attempt unplanned diplomatic overtures.
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