TRENTON -- Opinions of President Donald Trump have dropped during his first month in office, according to a poll of U.S. voters.

The Quinnipiac University survey said 55 percent disapproved of his performance in office, while just 38 percent approved. That's below his 51 percent negative and 42 percent positive job approval ratings earlier this month.

By 58 percent to 36 percent, voters said Trump was doing more to divide the country than to unify it.

"President Donald Trump's popularity is sinking like a rock," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac poll. "He gets slammed on honesty, empathy, level-headedness and the ability to unite. And two of his strong points, leadership and intelligence, are sinking to new lows. This is a terrible survey one month in."

Trump got his highest marks for the way he was handling the economy, with 47 percent approving and 41 percent disapproving.

Voters viewed his other actions negatively. They disapproved of his immigration policy, 58 percent to 40 percent; his handling for foreign policy, 56 percent to 36 percent; and his handling of terrorism 49 percent to 44 percent.

The survey was taken after Trump's immigration executive order, now blocked in the courts, that imposed a temporary ban on refugees and blocked anyone from seven Muslim countries -- Iraq, Iran, Syria, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and Somalia. Trump during the campaign called for a ban on admitting Muslims.

Voters also hammered Trump for calling independent U.S. media outlets "enemies of the American people."

Nine in 10 U.S. voters said it was important for journalists to hold public officials accountable, while 8 percent said it wasn't. Asked who they trust more, 52 percent said the media and 37 percent said Trump. And more than six in 10, 61 percent, disapproved of the way Trump described the media, while 35 percent approved

"The media, so demonized by the Trump administration, is actually a good deal more popular than President Trump," Malloy said.

The poll of 1,323 voters was conducted Feb. 16-21 with nationwide with a margin of error of 2.7 percentage points.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook