'Really hurt him': Exact moment Trump started spiraling pinpointed by expert

President Donald Trump is ramping up his tariff threats again, but CNN's Harry Enten said the policy remains as unpopular as ever.

The U.S. president slapped another round of punitive tariffs on 14 nations Monday, although global markets so far don't seem to be rattled. Enten told "CNN News Central" that voters remain skeptical about Trump's trade wars.

"I would say that voters feel about the same way that folks felt about New Coke in the mid-1980s: They love them in theory and hate them in practice," Enten said — with host Kate Bolduan pointing out that he'd used that reference before. "I just love soda, that's the bottom line."

Fewer than half of voters – just 39 percent – told pollsters in September, when Trump was running for president, that tariffs hurt the economy, but that number jumped to 57 percent last month — and only 28 percent think they're good for the U.S. economy, Enten said.

"All of a sudden the 'hurt' number has gone up and so does the disapproval rating of Trump on handling his trade policies," Enten said. "Look at this: disapprove of Trump's trade policies in January, it was 40 percent – up like a rocket, up to 54 percent now. In June, just 35 percent of Americans approve of his trade policies and, get this, just 30 percent of independents approve of his trade policies. So voters are going against tariffs, thinking they're hurting the economy, and they're going against Trump, in particular, on his trade policy."

"Might have liked them at the beginning, might have liked them back during the campaign," Enten said, "but when they're actually in practice, they hate, hate, hate."

April was a crucial month for Trump's second presidency, as that's when his so-called "Liberation Day" tariffs went into place and sent his approval on a downward trajectory.

"Why did Trump pull back?" Enten said. "Because the last tariff war hurt Trump's overall net approval rating. March 28, the tariffs, he was on even ground. He was significantly better than he was during his first term at the same time. But then in just a matter of weeks, his net approval rating went down into the gutter, down into the water, minus-six points, and he has never recovered from it."

"So the last tariff war really hurt him and he hasn't recovered yet," Enten added, "and I think that might be why Trump is a little bit hesitant to go back into the water, because he recognizes it just doesn't help him overall."

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