Douglas Schoen writes for The Messenger about bad news for President Biden’s re-election bid.
The Democratic Party generally — and President Biden specifically — have a profound problem: At home and abroad, seemingly everyone is mad at the American president, with severe consequences for American influence around the world.
Domestically, despite cooling inflation, just 30% of Americans say they agree with Democrats’ economic policy, while 42% prefer the Republicans’ approach. With the economy consistently ranking as the most important issue for voters, Americans’ pessimism — coupled with Biden’s consistently low approval ratings on the economy — figures to be a considerable problem as he seeks a second term.
Moreover, Hispanic voters — a critical Democratic constituency — are angry at the perceived leftward shift of today’s Democratic Party. Compared to 2018, the 2022 midterms saw a 10-point jump in Hispanic support for the GOP, according to exit polls and Edison research. In fact, the research shows that Hispanic support for Democrats in 2022 was the lowest it has been since the 1990s.
To that end, support for Biden among Hispanics has dropped more than among any other race or ethnicity, according to a FiveThirtyEight analysis, and nearly two-thirds (64%) of Hispanic voters say that Biden has accomplished “little or nothing” as president.
Internationally, Biden’s campaign promises to restore American leadership as a more traditional statesman than his predecessor have fallen flat, as it seems almost every international constituency is upset with the American president.
While Biden has led a robust and determined Western response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, including sending historic levels of military and humanitarian aid, Ukrainians are — rightfully — angry that Biden declared them “not ready” for NATO, despite arguably having done more for European security than any other country in blunting and eroding the Russian military.
Further, the White House has consistently slow-walked the delivery of weapons systems that Ukraine desperately needs, often refusing for months before ultimately relenting, wasting valuable time as Ukrainians valiantly fight for their survival.