President Joe Biden is grappling with challenges due to generally unfavorable job approval ratings, according to a recent CNN poll. A significant portion of the public has expressed concerns about his age, which has fueled debates about his ability to effectively lead the country. Additionally, there is waning confidence among voters who typically align with the Democratic party, which could hurt the party’s chances of success next year.
This diminished support within Biden’s own base might pose significant challenges for the administration in the coming months as the White house gears up for the 2024 election cycle. As the political landscape continues to evolve, it remains to be seen how these perceptions will impact voter trends and the overall trajectory of the Biden presidency.
As the New York Times observes, the administration’s reliance on Bidenomics – the term for Biden’s economic plan – is questionable since this strategy has yet to yield the expected results. Bidenomics, according to the White House, “is rooted in the recognition that the best way to grow the economy is from the middle out and the bottom up. It’s an economic vision centered around three key pillars: making smart public investments in America, empowering and educating workers to grow the middle class, [and] promoting competition to lower costs and help entrepreneurs and small businesses thrive.”
Bidenomics, in the form of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA); the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act; and the CHIPS and Science Act, is intended to speed a green energy transition to confront climate change, revive American manufacturing and union density, and check China’s economic and military power.
But despite presiding over an undeniably robust economy, which has so far defied concerns of a recession, Biden is having trouble rallying the majority of the nation behind his economic plan. With rising wages and a slowing inflation rate, one might expect a tide of appreciation for the president. However, that appreciation remains elusive as the CNN poll demonstrates.
According to CNN, “there is no clear leader in a potential rematch between Biden and former President Donald Trump, who is widely ahead in the GOP primary. And nearly half of registered voters (46%) say that any Republican presidential nominee would be a better choice than Biden in 2024.”
Part of the reason for this is because gas prices are on the rise and housing is becoming even more unaffordable. Less than 50% of Democrats believe economic conditions have improved under Biden, with 25% saying economic conditions have worsened. This does not bode well for the Democratic party in an election year.
Furthermore, recent polling data from the Democratic-affiliated group, Navigator, revealed that while 25% of Americans commend key initiatives by Biden, such as the IRA, they simultaneously believe he is not effectively managing the nation’s economy. Notably, this segment of the population skews younger, predominantly below the age of 40, and has a higher representation of Black and Latino citizens. These demographics are pivotal for Democratic electoral successes and Biden may lose them.
Beyond this issue lies the border crisis along with its accompanying and inevitable migrant crisis. On Friday, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) slammed the Biden administration for failing to allocate sufficient funding for humanitarian organizations operating on the Arizona-Mexico border.
New York Mayor Eric Adams created a storm last week when he admitted that the migrant crisis “will destroy New York City.” Adams was referring to the influx of over 100,000 migrants into the New York area, where housing and services are insufficient to deal with the problem. City officials claim the migrants will cost $12 billion over the next three years. Adams noted the city’s budget gap could grow to the same astronomical $12 billion, threatening to impact every community in the city.
Along with New York City, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Boston, Denver and Chicago all face the same problem. Migrants have overwhelmed the shelter systems in these cities and schools are being used instead – prompting outcries from residents.
Texas Gov. Gregg Abbott was forced to highlight the problem facing his state and he took action to share his problem by sending migrants to Democrat-led cities. Now, those cities are furious at the Biden administration, having come to believe the open border policy is damaging to them as well.
With such backlash coming from higher-level Democrats, the Biden administration is falling short of voter expectations. The numerous problems facing the White House cannot be blamed on the previous administration nor can they be blamed on the COVID-19 pandemic. White House spokeswoman Karine-Jeanne Pierre must do a better job at conveying the Biden administration’s intentions as well as successes. It would be too detrimental to lose the White House in 2024 when so much positive change is taking place on the ground.