While it’s normal for the President’s party to suffer some losses in midterm elections, this year’s midterms are looking especially gloomy for Democrats. As the President’s reactionary style of governance has him playing whack-a-mole, jumping from crisis to crisis, the American people’s patience and hope may be irrecoverably lost. Nearly every week, a new poll is released showing President Biden’s approval plummeting.
By almost every metric, President Joe Biden’s presidency is taking America down the wrong path. A Real Clear Politics average of polls taken over the last month currently finds that only 18% of Americans think America is headed in the right direction. Contrast that with 75% of respondents who believe America is on the wrong path. A recent New York Times/Siena College poll provided even more bad news for the President, showing that 13% of Americans believe that America is headed in the right direction, compared to 77% who say America is on the wrong path. When broken down by party, only 27% of Democrats surveyed say America is headed in the right direction. These numbers spell trouble for President Biden and Democrats across the U.S. looking towards the November midterms.
The same NYT/Siena poll revealed another shocking statistic: only 26% of Democrats think President Biden should run for reelection. It found that 64% of Democrats surveyed have buyers’ remorse and want someone other than Joe Biden to lead them.
When we look at other metrics, Biden’s poll numbers are no better. According to a new CNBC poll, only 30% of Americans approve of the President’s handling of the economy. When it comes to the economy, only 11% say it is excellent or good, whereas 88% say the economy is only fair or poor, according to CNBC’s poll. 52% think the economy will get worse in the next year. The exploding inflation numbers, while concerning in their own right, do not even fully capture the reality for most Americans – consider that groceries and gas prices are up 60% and 12%, respectively, according to the June Consumer Price Index (CPI) Report. Almost all of the goods that families depend on for their weekly living have increased in cost more than inflation shows.
At the end of the day, the most significant metric we have to measure the potential success of the President, political leaders, or their party is job approval. According to the CNBC poll, President Biden’s approval rating sits at 36% among all adults – an all-time low in NBC/CNBC polling. They go on to say, “What’s more, Biden’s ratings are lower than the worst scores ever for Barack Obama (41% job rating, 37% economic handling) during the entire course of his Presidency, according to both the CNBC and NBC surveys.
Clearly, Republicans have a strong opportunity to take Congress and stop the massive tax and spending bill “build back better” in its tracks. Wall Street Journal writer Ted Rall summed things up nicely, stating that President “Biden’s Problem Is Deeper Than Pessimism. Like Jimmy Carter, but unlike Barack Obama, he exudes a sense of hopelessness.” Republicans must deliver in November and end the Democrats’ era of hopelessness for the good of America’s small businesses, seniors, and the country as a whole.
Bob Carlstrom is President of AMAC Action