Full transcript of “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” April 27, 2025

On this “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” broadcast, moderated by Margaret Brennan: 

• CBS News director of elections and surveys Anthony Salvanto
• Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov 
• Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, Democrat of New Hampshire 
• Tom Homan, Trump administration border czar 

Click here to browse full transcripts from 2025 of “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan.”   

MARGARET BRENNAN: I’m Margaret Brennan in Washington.

And this week on Face the Nation: As Trump 2.0 nears the 100-day mark, what do Americans think of the job he’s doing?

It’s been 98 days of an unrelenting avalanche of change that’s turned Washington upside down and rankled even our closest international allies. As the impact of those changes are now being felt from coast to coast, what kind of progress report is America giving President Trump on the issues that got him elected, like the economy, inflation, immigration, and border security?

We will check in with the first-term head of Trump’s National Economic Council, Gary Cohn, and the administration’s point person on immigration, border czar Tom Homan. New Hampshire Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen will also be here.

Plus, what about Trump’s campaign promise to end the war in Ukraine on day one? Mr. Trump has been pushing hard for a cease-fire, but he’s frustrated with the pace of negotiations and the parties involved. In a rare interview, we talked with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov…

(Begin VT)

MARGARET BRENNAN: Why should the U.S. believe Russia is serious about ending the war?

(End VT)

MARGARET BRENNAN: … who gave us some insights from the Kremlin?

(Begin VT)

SERGEY LAVROV (Russian Foreign Minister): I read President Trump’s book “The Art to Make a Deal” (sic), and he does not advise to disclose information before – before it’s time.

(End VT)

MARGARET BRENNAN: It’s all just ahead on Face the Nation.

Good morning, and welcome to Face the Nation.

This morning, our new CBS News poll finds that President Trump’s overall approval rating has dropped eight points since his inauguration. And although six in 10 Americans say he is doing what he promised during the campaign, there is some growing concern about some of the policies he’s pursuing to fulfill those promises.

For more, we’re joined now by CBS News executive director of elections and surveys Anthony Salvanto.

Anthony, you look at those numbers, the president is not doing badly. What explains, though, the decline that we have seen since taking office?

ANTHONY SALVANTO: Good morning, Margaret.

Look, this is a story about big expectations and big changes. A big majority of Americans think that Donald Trump is making major changes to how the U.S. government works, to how the U.S. economy works.

But it’s also a story about focus, especially early in a term. What we see is, increasingly, Americans think that the administration is putting too much focus on trade and tariffs, and not enough on what they see as trying to lower…