
Joe Biden (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
President Joe Biden’s approval ratings continue to plummet further into oblivion as an increasing number of Americans realize that perhaps mean tweets aren’t so bad after all. Two polls released on Friday show the nation is becoming increasingly dissatisfied with the performance of this administration. While it seems unlikely that the president and his team have what it takes to pull themselves out of this hole, there is a possibility that they could turn the trend around.
The Descent of Biden’s Approval
The findings of polls conducted by Quinnipiac and the Trafalgar Group revealed some not-so-good news for Mr. Biden. Quinnipiac found that only 38% of respondents approved of his job performance, while 53% did not approve. The response from Independents was particularly striking, with 60% disapproving of the president’s performance – an eight percent increase (in disapproval) from when the poll was taken in September.
Attitudes about the president’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic have historically been high, but it appears Americans are growing more dissatisfied with his performance in this arena. The poll found that 48% of voters approve of his effort to halt the spread of the coronavirus.
Not surprisingly, less than 40% of respondents favor Biden’s handling of foreign policy, immigration, and the economy. These results are in line with polls conducted in September, especially those taken in the wake of the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan. An Associated Press poll released on Oct. 1 showed the president’s approval among Independents dropped from 62% in July to 38% in September.
The Trafalgar Group conducted a poll that also revealed the president’s approval was at 39.6%. His disapproval jumped to 56%. Over 50% said they “strongly disapprove” of Biden’s performance. Last month’s Trafalgar poll found that 43.5% of participants approved of the president’s job performance while 54.3% disapproved.
How Can Biden Get Out of This Mess?
That Biden will see his honeymoon approval ratings again is about as likely as Jen Psaki giving a straight answer to a tough question. However, there could be a glimmer of hope for Uncle Joe if he plays his cards right or even remembers where he misplaced his deck of cards in the first place.
It is too late to repair the situation in Afghanistan – that kerfuffle is already cast in stone. But there are other issues where he could make up lost ground. The most important area is, as always, the economy, stupid. The nation is experiencing a supply chain crisis, inflation, and abysmal jobs numbers. Biden’s approval ratings will never rebound until these issues are addressed.
Now that enhanced federal unemployment benefits have expired, there is a chance the president will do better in terms of jobs. However, the vaccine mandates he is pushing might put a damper on any movement in a positive direction.
As much as the Biden administration and the activist media wish to suppress the details of what is happening at the southern border, it remains an albatross around the president’s neck. It seems each month the situation worsens with new stories detailing the impact of the surge of migrants attempting to gain entry into the United States.
Vice President Kamala Harris, who is allegedly the border czar, has done little to nothing to address the “root causes” motivating these folks to make the dangerous journey to the southern border. At this point, it does not seem the White House is interested in solving the problem. But if it did – and began enacting policy that discouraged people from traveling from their home countries – it might help Biden get back on track.
Of course, these are all very big “ifs.” At this juncture, it seems evident the White House is not up to the task of dealing with the crises it created. This does not portend anything positive for the future of the administration or the Democratic Party as a whole.
~ Read more from Jeff Charles.