President Joe Biden may be suffering historically low approval ratings and polls also show many Americans are concerned about the incumbent’s age, but some Democrats still insist he’s up for a White House run – and will win in November.
‘Baffled’
Jim Kessler of the Washington-based center-left Third Way think tank said he didn’t understand why so many people were writing Biden off. “Biden faces challenges going into 2024, but I’m baffled by seemingly smart political people writing his chances off,” he told The Hill political site.
Biden’s Poor Polling
President Biden’s approval rating is currently at 39 percent, among the lowest of his almost three-year presidency, according to an average of five major polls conducted throughout December and aggregated by the FiveThirtyEight site. It’s only two points better than the 37 percent job approval rating in a Gallup poll in October last year.
Biden Presidential Polling
But the President is leading the race for the Democratic nomination for the 2024 presidential election, with around 70 percent voter support and almost no rivals, apart from author Marianne Williamson, who is barely registering in the polls.
Biden and Trump in 2024?
On the Republican side, former President Donald Trump is the frontrunner and has around a 50 percent lead in national polling over rivals including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. If he and Biden receive their parties’ nominations, the 2024 contest would effectively be a rerun of the 2020 election that Trump lost.
‘Stability Over Chaos’
Some Democrats, like Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen, argue that Biden has provided stability after the tumultuous four years of his predecessor.
‘Clear Differences’
Van Hollen told The Hill: “Elections are about choices. The American people don’t want a return to Trump’s chaos and aren’t looking for an authoritarian leader who admires dictators like [Russian President Vladimir Putin]. President Biden has a strong record of accomplishments, from bringing our economy back from the brink to passing historic legislation to standing up for Americans’ rights, and the difference in choices couldn’t be more clear.”
‘Hard for Trump to Win’
In an article on MSNBC titled “Biden’s 2024 chances are much stronger than people realize,” Democratic strategist Simon Rosenberg argues that it will be “very hard” for Trump to win in 2024.
Trump a ‘Threat’
Rosenberg writes: “Trump represents an unprecedented threat to the country, is even more extreme than 2020, and has, in political parlance, the highest ‘negatives’ of any candidate perhaps in our history. It is going to be very hard for him to win next year.”
Optimistic of Biden Win
And Rosenberg concluded, referencing Trump’s Make America Great Again campaign slogan: “I am optimistic that Joe Biden and the Democrats will once again beat Donald Trump, and hopefully, this time, send MAGA into the dustbin of history where it belongs.”
Trump’s Many Legal Battles
One factor that may upset Trump’s chances of winning the election – if he does get the GOP nomination – are 91 criminal charges against him contained in four indictments. Two indictments, one at federal level and one in Georgia, say Trump tried to overturn the result of the 2020 election and prevent the peaceful transfer of presidential power.
Another claims Trump illegally kept classified government documents at his home in Florida while a fourth says he covered up hush money payments with fraudulent accounting to a former adult film actress so she wouldn’t talk about an alleged affair with him. Trump has denied all the charges.
Biden’s Age Issue
Polls show most Americans are concerned about Biden’s 81 years, and Trump is just a few years younger, at 77. Biden, in particular, raised those concerns in recent months with a string of gaffes in which he stumbled on stage and the steps of Air Force One and also gave incoherent press conferences and remarks to reporters. Some wonder if Biden is capable of running another campaign, let alone running the country for another four years.
The Bidenomics Vote
President Biden will be hoping his economic policies – so-called Bidenomics – resonate with voters going into the November election, say political analysts. The economy is outperforming expectations and a predicted recession has not materialized. Inflation, although still high, has come down, and unemployment has also shrunk.
Foreign Policy Focus
One area presidential candidates will have to pay close attention to is foreign policy, according to a new Associated Press-NORC poll that says most Americans want their leaders to put more focus on this area amid wars raging in the Middle East and Ukraine.
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