Advisers reportedly fear that Trump's behavior over the summer may have sabotaged his chances of reelection in 2020

SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images

US President Donald Trump gestures as he speaks during a Make America Great Again rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, April 27, 2019.

• Advisers to US President Donald Trump believe that he has damaged his chances of reelection in 2020 with his behavior and missteps over the summer, reported the Washington Post.
• Since July 4, Trump has launched racist attacks on four progressive congresswomen of color, and stirred partisan divides on a visit to mass shooting victims in El Paso, Texas. 
• In recent weeks signs of a looming recession have emerged, which some analysts are blaming on the president's trade war with China. 
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Advisers to US President Donald Trump believe that his behavior over the course of the summer, in which has been accused of deliberately stirring America's racial tensions, may have harmed his prospects of election in 2020, the Washington Post reported on Sunday.

Staff close to the president, as well as allies outside the White House, have privately complained that the summer has been one of "missed opportunity and self sabotage" for Trump, the Post reported.

Some supporters have publicly criticized the president's actions over the summer, with Dan Eberhart, a Republican donor and chief executive of Canary, a drilling services company, telling the Post: "Trump squandered a summer of opportunity to enhance his reelection campaign."

"While Democrats are divided and focused on their own primary, President Trump could have focused on solving the trade war, a genuine infrastructure plan or a decisive foreign policy victory.

"Instead, he fanned the flames of the trade war, attacked Baltimore, 'the squad' and the Federal Reserve, and failed to add a cornerstone achievement to his 2020 election credentials," Eberhart said.

Eberhart concluded: "As a Republican, all you can do is hope it doesn't end in a wreck."

Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) speaks as Reps. Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), and Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) listen during a press conference at the US Capitol on July 15, 2019 in Washington, DC.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider on the report, but said in a statement to the Post that Trump has "accomplished more at this point in his first term than any president in history." 

"His policies are building a safer, stronger and more secure America," White House spokesman Judd Deere told the administration." 

Read more: The National Weather Service corrected Trump after he falsely claimed that Hurricane Dorian will hit Alabama

In the president's July 4 speech in Washington DC, he avoided the partisan attacks that characterize his campaign rallies and focused instead on praising the achievements of the US military.

But since then the president has launched a series of racist attacks against four progressive congresswomen of color nicknamed The Squad, and characterized the majority-black city of Baltimore as "infested" with vermin.

Trump denied that he had "brought racist attacks" against the four congresswomen in a tweet Monday, saying that they have "brought racist attacks against our Nation."

"All I do is call them out for the horrible things they have said."

In recent weeks, critics have pointed to a link between Trump's hardline anti-migrant rhetoric and the violent hatred of immigrants that the El Paso mass shooter said motivated him.

Trump used a trip to visit victims of the shooting and another shooting in Dayton, Ohio,to attack political opponents.

Read more: A Trump campaign official left a CNN host stunned by claiming Trump has never lied to the American people

In recent weeks economists have claimed that a recession may be on its way, imperilling the strong economic performance that president has boasted of under his presidency when making his case for reelection.

Among the factors being blamed for the economic slowdown is the president's trade war on China, with the administration's team of negotiators reportedly no closer to striking a new trade deal with Beijing and ending the standoff. 

AP/Saul Loeb

US President Donald Trump, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping arrive for a meeting on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit in Hamburg, Germany.

In a survey of the president's approval ratings compiled by pollsters FiveThirtyEight, Trump's disapproval rating has increased from 52.6% on July 4, to 54.2% on September 2.

Some analysts, however, believe that Trump's divisive rhetoric and hardline stance with China may actually strengthen his hand as the 2020 campaign gears up.